Poll violence in West Bengal claims 7 lives, 740 injured

Kolkata, May 1: Poll

has so far claimed seven lives in

and left 740 persons injured in 825 incidents, the Election Commission sources said on Thursday. While one person lost his life in Nadia district late in the month of March, the second death took place at Jalangi in Murshidabad district in early April, followed by the third death in Birbhum and fourth death at Manikchak under Malda district also in the last month, OSD in CEO's office, Amit Roy Chowdhury said here.

[Read: Why Mamata Banerjee's West Bengal is back to stone-age polling]

Apart from these, two poll deaths had taken place in the state on April 26, the sources said adding Prahlad Roy of CPI(M) died in a clash at Ghatal in West Midnapore, while Amitabha Panja of Trinamool Congress died in another clash at Hatgobindapur in Burdwan district. The seventh death was also reported from the West Midnapore district late last month when a CPI(M) supporter died in a clash in Keshpur area, Roy Chowdhury said.

Over 35 people have been arrested in connection to violence, the EC said.

Over 35 persons were arrested in all these incidents of violence in different parts of the state, he said. The incidents of violence were either attack on the election personnel by activists of a political party or clash between two major political parties in the state, the sources said. He said in a statewide drive against illegal arms and ammunition ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, huge quantity of illegal arms and weapons and cartridges were seized.

The Income Tax department has so far seized about Rs 7.09 crore unaccounted cash, in several cases. Smuggled gold worth Rs 2.82 crore was also seized. The Excise department has so far seized over four lakh bulk litres of illicit liquor valued at Rs 3.45 crore.

The EC on Thursday took suo motu cognizance against Trinamool Congress MLA from Salboni Srikanto Mahato for verbally abusing CPI(M) leader Md Salim. "The West Midnapore DM has been asked to take action and submit a report to the EC," Roy Chowdhury said.

PTI