Perfume on EVM? Trinamool Congress workers spray scent on party button, smell voters’ fingers

The political battle between the Trinamool Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in West Bengal has reached a new height of innovation, but in an illegal way. The TMC has reportedly sprayed perfume on the button allotted for its candidates to ascertain whether one has voted for Mamata Banerjee-led party or not, reported Ananda Bazar Patrika.   

The incident was reported from Majhigram village of Mangalkote area which falls under the Birbhum Lok Sabha parliamentary constituency.

The report suggests that TMC workers were standing at a 'safe' distance to ensure that votes were polled in their direction. The report added that a local TMC leadership had sprayed ‘ittar’ (perfume) on the EVM button for the party. It quoted sources as saying that “if you vote for the TMC, the smell stays on your finger”.

The report also claimed that several such complaints have been registered by those “whose fingers didn’t smell of perfume”

“When a political party like the Trinamool knows that it has been rejected by voters, it resorts to every method known to subvert a free and fair poll,” News18 quoted Shishir Bajoria, BJP leader and member of the party’s election management committee, as saying.

However, the TMC has denied the allegations.

West Bengal recorded a high turnout at 76.66 in the eight seats though clashes broke out between supporters of TMC and BJP in Nanoor, Rampurhat, Nalhati and Suri areas of Birbhum seat, leaving several people injured.

In Barabani, BJP candidate from Asansol and Union minister minister Babul Supriyo's vehicle was vandalised allegedly by TMC workers outside a polling station while in Dubrajpur area central security forces personnel reportedly opened fire in the air to disperse irate people who attacked them when they were barred from entering the booths with mobile phones.

An FIR was registered against Supriyo for allegedly getting into an argument with polling officials, an election official said. The ruling Trinamool Congress and the BJP accused each other of intimidating voters in the state, which has seen violence in all previous three phases despite stepped up central forces deployment.

(With PTI inputs)