The Election Commission of India has placed 106 individuals with criminal records under preventive detention in three West Bengal districts ahead of the first phase of assembly elections on April 23. The action aims to ensure a violence-free polling process. The ruling Trinamool Congress has filed a PIL in Calcutta High Court against potential further detentions.
The Election Commission of India conducted an overnight crackdown, detaining 106 people with criminal antecedents in Cooch Behar, South 24 Parganas, and Murshidabad districts ahead of first-phase polling on April 23. Officials from the state Chief Electoral Officer’s office described it as a targeted action based on identified inputs.
A senior ECI official stated, “This is a targeted preventive action... The objective is to ensure a violence-free and intimidation-free polling process. Such measures are part of standard protocol in sensitive constituencies.” For Phase 1, 2,193 Quick Response Teams have been deployed, with focus on sensitive areas like Murshidabad.
The Trinamool Congress filed a PIL in Calcutta High Court, claiming around 800 of its workers could face detention on ECI directions. TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee approached the court, with a hearing set for April 22.
BJP West Bengal spokesperson Debjit Sarkar reacted, “Action like this should not be a one-time exercise... such stringent action should ensure it never happens again.” ECI introduced guidelines for polling agents: if absent over 30 minutes, central forces will locate them to check for coercion.
