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Showing contexts for: BOOTH CAPTURING in Pa(Ss) Soumendu Adhikari vs The State Of West Bengal And Ors on 26 April, 2022Matching Fragments
Mr. Vipul Kundalia, Mr. Somnath Adhikari, Advocates ... for Union of India Counsel for the parties have been heard on interim prayer for forensic audit of CCTV footage of 2 WPA(P) 91 of 2022 Contai Municipal election.
This writ petition relates to the allegations of malpractices such as booth capturing, forged voting, violence etc. during the Contai municipal elections held on 27.02.2022. The prayer in the petition is to hold fresh polls to the Contai Municipality by deployment of central paramilitary forces.
In WPA(P) 271 of 2021 in the case of Mousumi Roy vs. West Bengal State Election Commission and Others, this Court by order dated 23.02.2022 had directed that above directions will apply mutatis 9 WPA(P) 91 of 2022 mutandis in the remaining 108 Municipality elections.
At this stage, the submission of the learned Counsel for the petitioner is that incidents of violence and malpractices in polling during the Contai Municipal election on 27.02.2022 have been recorded in the CCTV cameras. It has been alleged that though 97 CCTV cameras were installed but as per the information received about 91 CCTV cameras were destroyed and made non-functional. There is also an allegation that booth capturing took place during the polling and even candidates were beaten.
The State Election Commission in the earlier proceeding had clearly recorded their no objection for forensic audit, therefore, now the State Election Commissioner is not justified in changing the stand and opposing the prayer. The changed stand of the State Election Commission runs counter to its object of holding and ensuring free and fair election. This Court fails to understand as to why the State Election Commission does not want to ascertain if free and fair elections were held or if the allegation of large scale 11 WPA(P) 91 of 2022 booth capturing, forged voting, etc. is correct.
b) while sending the CCTV footage as above, the State Election Commission will duly mark the concerned polling booth number to which each footage relates to;
c) the CFSL will carry out the forensic audit of CCTV footage and ascertain if booth capturing, EVM tampering, forged voting (chhapa voting), violence, etc. had taken place in the respective polling booth;