Bengal poll: 45% of north Kolkata stalls labeled ‘super sensitive’

KOLKATA: The Election Commission has designated 837 of the 1,835 stalls in Kolkata North Assembly constituency as “super sensitive” stalls, citing concerns over possible trouble-making. During the SIR campaign, at hundreds of such booths, 150 or more names were removed from the electoral rolls. “The Election Commission is concerned that residents who have been left out of the electoral roll may take to the streets to vent their anger over the deletion of the electoral roll,” the Kolkata North District Electoral Officer (DEO) said on Monday. “The poll body has identified 837 out of 1,835 polling stations in the assembly constituencies as ‘super sensitive’. Among the seven assembly constituencies in Kolkata North district, Shyampukur has the highest number of such ultra-sensitive stalls (80),” she said. Pandey said apart from deletion, “troublesome, illegal and setting up of stalls in densely populated areas” were also factors considered in the decision to label the stalls as “hyper sensitive”. A European Commission official admitted that the number of “ultra-sensitive” stalls is quite high, accounting for about 45.6% of the total. The EC also declared 264 polling stations out of 583 polling stations in seven assembly constituencies as “super sensitive”. Pandey said the Election Commission plans to use drones in densely populated lanes in the northern part of the city “to ensure free and fair elections”. Kolkata Police Commissioner Ajay Nand, who attended a press conference at the Kolkata North DEO, said police and paramilitary personnel had started marching along the route as a confidence-building measure. He said preventive arrests were also being made and unaccounted cash was seized. Kolkata South DEO Randhir Kumar said more than 400 polling stations out of 1,093 polling stations in the four assembly constituencies under the Assembly seat have been identified as “critical” or “vulnerable”. Kumar said law enforcement agencies have so far seized unaccounted cash and items worth Rs 89 crore, including Rs 80 lakh recovered earlier in the day. In addition, 32 weapons and 83 rounds of ammunition were seized. Kumar added that CAPF has deployed around 30 companies in the city to ensure free and fair polls.