While India slept peacefully on Thursday night (April 30), West Bengal witnessed high drama. Days away from the results — the winners of the elections will be declared on May 4 — the Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee, staged a sit-in protest outside the counting centre strongroom, alleging electronic voting machine tampering attempts by the opposition, the BJP.
The Election Commission had rejected the TMC’s claims of tampering, asserting that all strongrooms were secured and sealed. The main opposition party in the state, the BJP, has also denied allegations of vote tampering. BJP’s Tapas Roy said that the ruling party leaders “are spreading rumours” as they “are preparing ground for their defeat” in the assembly polls.
So, what exactly happened? We give you a blow-by-blow account of how drama unfolded in
West Bengal.
TMC’s sit-in protest after EVM tampering
On Thursday evening, the TMC ignited new drama when it alleged irregularities inside a strongroom housing Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) at Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in central Kolkata, and accused the BJP and the Election Commission of allowing activity without opposition oversight.
❗️ALARMING❗️
This is the murder of democracy in broad daylight.
CCTV footage has exposed how @BJP4India, in active collusion with the @ECISVEEP, is opening ballot boxes without the presence of any relevant party stakeholders. This is gross electoral fraud being committed openly… pic.twitter.com/aSe36kGKPI
— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) April 30, 2026
Soon after, TMC candidates Sashi Panja and Kunal Ghosh gathered at the site, staging a sit-in outside Netaji Indoor Stadium, barely 100 metres away. Other Trinamool workers also gathered at the sit-in site, shouting slogans against the BJP.
Ghosh alleged that TMC workers stationed outside a strongroom in Kolkata were asked to leave in the afternoon and later informed via email that the strongroom would reopen at 4 pm. Panja also raised concerns over the protocol, saying, “The strongroom is extremely sensitive. If it is opened, all political parties must be informed. Why was no one informed?”
West Bengal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee, along with her election agent, also made her way to the strongroom at Sakhawat Memorial School in south Kolkata. After spending more than four hours inside the premises, she stepped out around 12.07 am, striking a defiant note. “Either the candidate or one agent can stay upstairs. I have also suggested installation of a CCTV camera for the media,” she told reporters.
“People’s votes must be protected. I rushed here after receiving complaints. The central forces initially did not allow me to enter. If there is any plan to tamper with the counting process, it will not be tolerated,” she further added.
BJP’s game plan is out in the open, and it is a blueprint for failure.
They deleted legitimate voters through SIR. They failed. They purged neutral officials and installed their own stooges. That failed too. They even attempted a midnight heist at the Netaji Indoor Stadium… pic.twitter.com/EJU8CRncE2
— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) April 30, 2026
The CM and TMC chief further accused the Election Commission of India of bias, and said, “Our agent has been arrested; there has been so much one-sidedness. Even after that, if someone tries to steal the EVM machine, if someone tries to steal the counting, then we will fight life and death together.”
EC responds to TMC’s claims
The Election Commission has rejected the allegations made by the TMC of vote tampering. The election agency stated that the main strong rooms were safely secured and locked, and segregation of the ballots was taking place in the corridor of the strongrooms.
In an apparent reference to the video posted by the Trinamool Congress on its X handle, the officials said that all strong rooms containing polled EVMs are safely secured and sealed. They noted that there was routine segregation of postal ballots.
“With reference to the video being circulated on social media handles: there are seven AC strong rooms inside the Kgudiram Anushilan Kendra; they all have been duly closed and sealed in the presence of candidates/election agents and general observer after completion of poll yesterday. Last strongroom was closed in the morning around 5.15 am,” an Election Commission official said.
“All strongrooms containing polled EVMs are safely secured and sealed. There is another strongroom in the same premises for postal ballot wherein we have kept AC-wise polled ballots as done by different polling personnel and ETBPS (Electronic Transmitted Postal Ballot System),” the official added
Officials said that the poll panel had notified all observers, ROs, and requested ROs to inform their candidates and agents about this. “ROs informed the political parties by mail. The segregation of the ballot was taking place in the corridor of strongrooms containing polled premise from 4pm. The main strong rooms are safely secured and locked. The same was duly shown to Shashi Panja, Kunal Ghosh, and Kali from BJP,” the official added.
Even Chief Election Officer Manoj Agarwal said, “Nothing has been done out of the statutory procedure of ECI. The allegation that came is baseless. Even after that, we are seeking a report. If anyone breaches the legal procedure, stern action will be taken.”
BJP lashes out at TMC
BJP leaders have dismissed the TMC allegations, saying that they were spreading rumours owing to their impending defeat in the polls.
“This is just a rumour, nothing else. This cannot be done. They are making such claims because they are going to lose. There is a three-layer security arrangement in place. They can stay there and watch from a certain distance. Everything is allowed by the Election Commission. But the way they are spreading rumours is not correct,” said BJP’s Tapas Roy as quoted by ANI.
চোরের মায়ের বড় গলা!
A minister in the Mamata Banerjee government, and a chit fund scam-accused member of the TMC, who came to power on stolen mandates, are protesting outside the strong room where EVMs are kept, without any valid reason.
Here are the facts:
👉 All strong… pic.twitter.com/mqgo4V5xPV
— BJP West Bengal (@BJP4Bengal) May 1, 2026
Bengal BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya also added that the TMC has conceded its defeat. “TMC has admitted defeat before their defeat. Mamata Banerjee knows TMC’s situation. The government is going out of power, but with this, the party will also finish off within a few months. So, this is the flickering of flame before being extinguished. How long will the people of West Bengal see this drama? This will have no impact,” he said.
BJP’s IT Cell head, Amit Malviya, also referred to Banerjee’s visit to the strongroom as the “clearest exit poll for West Bengal”.
Mamata Banerjee’s theatrics this evening are perhaps the clearest “exit poll” for West Bengal. The writing on the wall is evident and so is the desperation to distract from it.
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) April 30, 2026
Exit polls predict loss for TMC
The entire drama unfolded after several
exit polls predicted a win for the BJP in the state of
West Bengal. According to Matrize, the BJP is likely to get 146 to 161 seats in the 294-member House, while the TMC is likely to get 125 to 140 seats. Poll Diary predicted a BJP win with 142 to 171 seats, with the TMC trailing at 95.
Today’s Chanakya has also predicted a saffron sweep in the state — BJP is forecast to win over 190 seats, with the TMC expected to secure around 100 seats.
But Mamata has rejected the exit poll predictions. “Let me reassure you. What they are showing on TV is from the BJP office. I myself received the information at 1:08 pm during the polling day from a press media source. The language is clear, the media organisations were offered money and forced to push out the data manufactured by the BJP,” the chief minister told The Telegraph.
She said that despite using the full power of the central machinery, including the misconduct of armed forces, the saffron party has lost the battle in the vote box.
With inputs from agencies
First Published:
May 01, 2026, 11:47 IST
End of Article
