TMC: BSF threatening voters in border areas

KOLKATA: West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress on Thursday met the full bench of the Election Commission of India and alleged that the BSF is threatening people in the border areas of the state to cast their votes in favour of a particular political party.

However, in a statement issued by the Border Security Force (BSF) in response to allegations made by TMC, it said the force was “apolitical” . “Border Security Force (BSF) is an apolitical force,” the statement by BSF said.

The full bench of the ECI, led by Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, arrived in the state on Wednesday evening on a three-day visit ahead of the assembly polls, the dates of which are yet to be announced.

“We have informed the CEC and other ECI officials that the BSF is threatening voters in the border areas. We have received inputs that officers of the paramilitary force are visiting various villages and asking people to cast their votes in favour of a particular political party. This is a dangerous situation and the ECI must look into it,” TMC secretary-general Partha Chatterjee told reporters after meeting the ECI delegation here.

Chatterjee also alleged that the BSF personnel were telling the villagers that “none but us will remain in the border areas throughout the year to look after you”.

Reacting to the TMC allegations, BJP state chief Dilip Ghosh said, “Those levelling the allegations know better what prompted them to say such things.”

He said the BJP urged the ECI for the deployment of central forces in each booth during the elections.

“The party also informed the ECI about the abnormal rise in the number of voters possibly due to the inclusion of infiltrators in the list and urged the poll panel to look into the matter,” Ghosh said.