Falta cheers repoll, hopeful of voting after EC scraps April 29 poll
Telegraph | 4 May 2026
Residents of Hashimnagar under the Falta Assembly constituency erupted in celebrations late on Saturday night after the Election Commission countermanded its poll held on April 29 and ordered a repoll for the seat on May 21.
A sense of euphoria was palpable across the area on Sunday, with the repoll dominating conversations in markets, tea stalls and neighbourhood gatherings, reflecting relief and renewed political energy.
For villagers who had taken to the streets, the announcement came as a vindication of their protest.
On Saturday night, as this news beamed across TV screens, people poured out of their homes and raised slogans hailing the EC and renewed their demand for the arrest of Trinamool Congress candidate Jahangir Khan.
“We are thankful to the Election Commission for the repoll order. But we want Jahangir and his men arrested for terrorising us and making our life hell,” said a homemaker, who had been a part of the protests, on Sunday.
The celebrations followed two days of sustained agitation, during which residents blocked NH117 and staged protests alleging systematic intimidation ahead of polling.
Villagers claimed they were threatened with being “burnt alive” and that women were warned of “rape” if they stepped out to vote.
Many alleged that such coercion began at least two days before polling, effectively confining families indoors despite the presence of central forces.
For many residents, the repoll order restored a sense of hope.
Rani Mondal, a homemaker, who joined the protest, said: “We are all very happy and thankful to the Election Commission. If Jahangir is so popular and Trinamool has done so much for people, why are they afraid to face voters? They threatened to set us on fire and rape us, so we could not dare to turn up at the polling stations. Now we are hopeful of casting our votes on May 21.”
Counting of votes for the Falta seat will be on May 24, 20 days after the rest of Bengal.
Welcoming the EC’s repoll order, BJP candidate from Falta, Debangshu Panda, said: “The countermanding of the April 29 election here proved that people had rightly protested against intimidation and malpractices."
Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya termed the poll panel’s repoll order an effort to safeguard democratic rights.
“What happened in Falta on the day of polling was unexpected and should not have happened at all. This kind of vote culture in Bengal needs to change,” he said.