Kolkata, April 29: A polling booth in Panihati, North 24 Parganas, became the centre of a major controversy on Wednesday — voting day for the second and final phase of the West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 — after a blob of ink was allegedly found smeared on the BJP symbol’s button on an Electronic Voting Machine (EVM), rendering it illegible for voters. The incident unfolded at a time when Ratna Debnath, the BJP candidate from Panihati and the mother of the victim in the 2024 RG Kar Medical College rape and murder case, was already facing what she described as a targeted campaign of intimidation by Trinamool Congress workers.
According to eyewitnesses and local reports, voters waiting at the polling booth were unable to identify the BJP button on the EVM due to the ink smear. The matter was raised as an objection by BJP workers, and the ink was subsequently removed using sanitiser. However, locals were reportedly made to wait for over an hour before polling resumed at the affected booth. Jay Saha, the Chief Election Agent for Ratna Debnath, was present at the scene during the standoff, and TMC workers were reported to have gathered at the booth and created a ruckus, further disrupting the voting process.
Ratna Debnath, speaking to the media, did not mince words. “TMC workers intensely targeted me earlier today. They sent goons who attacked me while shouting ‘go back’ slogans. The Police refused to cooperate when I asked them to make arrests. Now, as a candidate, I found that in this booth, ink has been put on BJP button on the EVM. How will the public be able to vote?” she said.
The allegations carry significant weight given who Ratna Debnath is — not just a political candidate, but a symbol of the broader public demand for justice that has defined West Bengal’s political discourse since August 2024. Her daughter, a 26-year-old doctor, was raped and murdered inside a locked seminar room at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. The case triggered massive nationwide protests and drew attention to systemic failures in women’s safety, particularly within state-run institutions in West Bengal. Debnath, after months of public grief and advocacy, agreed to contest the Panihati seat on a BJP ticket, stating that she feared justice might not come in her lifetime if she remained outside the political arena.
“As days go by, I keep wondering if I will get justice while I am alive. For this, I have joined politics,” she had said during her campaign trail. Her entry into the electoral fray was endorsed at the highest level of the BJP — Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared a stage with her at a campaign rally in Panihati just days before polling, publicly commending her for “fighting with great courage.”
The Panihati constituency is located in North 24 Parganas, a district that has historically been a TMC stronghold. Debnath is pitted against TMC’s Tirthankar Ghosh and CPI(M)’s Kalatan Dasgupta in what has become one of the most emotionally charged contests of the 2026 West Bengal election cycle. The symbolic weight of her candidacy — a grieving mother seeking justice through democracy — has drawn national attention to a seat that would otherwise have been a routine TMC retention.
Wednesday’s poll-day allegations, if substantiated, represent a serious breach of electoral process. The Election Commission of India has deployed an unprecedented security apparatus for Phase 2, including 2,321 companies of central forces across seven districts, with Kolkata and its surrounding areas receiving the highest deployment. Drones equipped with cameras are being used for aerial surveillance of polling stations, and 142 general observers, 95 police observers, and 100 expenditure observers have been stationed across the phase. The National Investigation Agency has also been deployed for the first time during these elections to respond to serious incidents.
Despite these arrangements, incidents of violence and poll malpractice have been reported from multiple districts throughout the day. In Howrah’s Bally, an EVM glitch sparked a clash that led to CRPF personnel detaining two individuals. In Nadia’s Khanakul, clashes broke out between TMC and ISF supporters over allegations of fake polling agents. A BJP polling agent in Chapra, Nadia was allegedly attacked while en route to his designated booth. In North 24 Parganas’ Panihati — where Ratna Debnath is contesting — the ink-on-EVM incident adds another layer to a day already marred by allegations of organised intimidation.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on the other hand, has claimed the elections are being conducted under BJP influence, alleging that central forces and election observers are acting at the BJP’s behest. The BJP has rejected the charge entirely. State BJP president Samik Bhattacharya and senior leader Dilip Ghosh argued that the heavy deployment of central forces has created a comparatively free and fair polling environment that TMC previously prevented through intimidation.
Overall voter turnout across the 142 seats in Phase 2 stood at approximately 61.11 per cent by 1 PM, with Purba Bardhaman leading the districts. Counting of votes for both phases of the West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 will take place on May 2.
The outcome of the Panihati seat, in particular, will be watched closely — not just as a measure of political arithmetic, but as a verdict on whether the shadow of the RG Kar case has translated into electoral accountability.