Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders staged a sit-in protest Thursday outside the EVM strongroom at Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata [1].
The demonstration follows the second phase of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections [1, 2]. The protest highlights escalating tensions between the ruling party and election officials over the integrity of the voting process as the state awaits final results.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee joined party leaders Kunal Ghosh and Shashi Panja in the protest [1, 3]. The TMC alleges that officials from the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attempted to open electronic voting machine boxes without party representatives present [3, 4]. Party members suggested these actions indicated possible tampering of the machines [3, 5].
Banerjee urged party members to remain vigilant until counting is completed, she said [6].
The Election Commission of India dismissed the allegations of misconduct. A spokesperson for the commission said the strongrooms are sealed and secure [7]. The commission said there was no evidence of external interference or tampering with the machines [8].
Security remained tight at the Netaji Indoor Stadium as TMC workers continued their sit-in [1, 4]. The dispute centers on whether the protocol for securing the machines was bypassed by officials, a claim the ECI continues to deny [4, 8].
“The strongrooms are sealed and secure.”
The confrontation at the Netaji Indoor Stadium underscores a deep lack of trust between the TMC and the Election Commission of India. By staging a high-profile protest involving the Chief Minister, the TMC is creating a public record of alleged irregularities that could be used to challenge the legitimacy of the results if the party faces unexpected losses in the 2026 assembly elections.
