Panchayat poll violence: Centre says first report 'sketchy', asks Bengal govt to send another

The Centre today termed as "sketchy" details on the panchayat polls violence and asked the West Bengal government to send another report, an official said.

The second communication was sent two days after a similar one following large-scale violence during the elections to the local bodies in the state on Monday. Over a dozen lives were lost in the violence. The Union home ministry has asked the West Bengal government to provide a detailed report on the violence during the polls as the report the state government had sent was "sketchy", the official said.

The state government has been told to provide details on the circumstances leading to the violence and the steps taken to restore peace and punish those involved, the official said. Despite massive security arrangements, widespread violence marred the panchayat polls. Clashes between the supporters of the ruling Trinamool Congress and the opposition parties occurred in many parts of the state including North and South 24 Parganas, Nadia, Murshidabad and South Dinajpur districts. More than 60,000 security personnel from West Bengal and neighbouring states were deployed for the panchayat polls.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday hit out at the Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal over violence during the panchayat elections in the state, saying democracy was "murdered" for narrow political interests.Addressing BJP workers at the party headquaters here following the Karnataka verdict, he said the people should think seriously about the violence in West Bengal yesterday. "The way democracy was murdered... from (filing of) nominations to polling, democracy had no place," he said.

Modi claimed that efforts were made to ensure that "opposition candidates are unable to file their nominations so that ruling party members are elected unopposed". "Ballot boxes were found in a pond... innocent party workers, not only of the BJP but of other parties too, were killed," he said. Modi told the gathering that once the people of Bengal led the nation, but blood was spilled yesterday to further political interests.

"I don't talk of who wins or loses, but democracy was wounded... All parties, the civil society and the judiciary will have to play an active role... My concern is democracy, and I am not here to blame any political party," he said.