TMC LEADING IN BENGAL PANCHAYAT POLLS, COUNTING OF VOTES CONTINUES

Despite the presence of police and Central forces, the counting of votes in Bengal's panchayat polls saw widespread clashes between supporters of the ruling Trinamool Congress and its opponents - the BJP, the CPIM, Congress and the Indian Secular Front.

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The Trinamool Congress was comfortably leading in all segments of the three-tier panchayat votes, but pockets of defiance like BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari's pocket borough Nandigram stood out. In the gram panchayats, the Trinamool Congress was on the way to winning almost 65 per cent of the 3,317 seats when reports last came in.

Strange allegations also surfaced during the counting of votes. In Ashoknagar in North 24-Parganas district, CPIM candidate Rabindranath Majumdar alleged that he had won by four votes, but the Trinamool candidate Mahadev Mati "snatched and ate" a bunch of the ballot papers, after which officials declared that the Trinamool candidate had won by a margin of 40 votes.

BJP MLA Chandana Bauri's car was stoned in Shaltora in Bankura district while an elderly person was injured in a bomb blast at Bakcha in East Medinipur on Tuesday. MLA Tapas Saha of Nadia's Tehatta was injured by central forces' lathi-charge while several people were injured in the clash between the Trinamool and CPM in West Burdwan's Kanksa.