Kolkata: Nearly 79 per cent of around 5.24 lakh electors in Nandigram and Rejinagar assembly seats exercised their franchise in the by-elections till 5 pm on Tuesday, EC officials said.
Polling began at 7 am and officially concluded at 6 pm, though those still in the queues will be allowed to vote, they said.
While the Nandigram assembly seat in Purba Medinipur district recorded a polling percentage of 79.39, Rejinagar in Murshidabad registered 78.42 per cent voter turnout in the same time.
Rejinagar has 2,57,657 electors, and Nandigram has 2,67,157 voters.
“Other than some very small incidents, polling in these two constituencies remained peaceful,” an official said.
During Tuesday’s polling, the poll body’s Complaint Monitoring System received 37 complaints through the Correspondence Management System (CMS), the official said.
“The National Grievance Service Portal (NGSP) received 60 complaints,” the official said.
The election commission official said that they have sought a report regarding the arrest of Aam Janata Unnayan Party chief Humayun Kabir following an argument with them during Tuesday’s polling at Rejinagar constituency.
The Nandigram seat was the epicentre of former CM Mamata Banerjee’s anti-land acquisition movement that helped pave the way for the TMC’s rise in 2011. It was also where BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari defeated Banerjee in 2021.
Adhikari, now chief minister, won Nandigram again in the 2026 assembly election but retained Bhabanipur, necessitating the bypoll.
The BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath, mother of Chandranath Rath, a former aide of Adhikari. He was shot dead on May 6, two days after the BJP won the assembly elections.
The Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction’s nominee Sanchita Pradhan Dey withdrew her name after meeting Adhikari, following which Banerjee, left without a candidate, backed Congress nominee Milan Pradhan and described the move as an effort to strengthen the INDIA bloc.
Pradhan was arrested in old cases linked to the 2007 Nandigram land-acquisition agitation but later secured interim bail and returned to campaign.
The rival TMC faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee has fielded Mohammad Eteshamul Haque under the envelope symbol and a separate temporary party identity. The CPI has nominated Santigopal Giri.
Rejinagar in Murshidabad presents a different political equation.
The seat fell vacant after Humayun Kabir, who won both Rejinagar and Nowda in the 2026 assembly election, retained Nowda. His Aam Janata Unnayan Party has fielded his son Golam Nabi Azad.
The contest includes BJP nominee Sakharav Sarkar, former Murshidabad district president, Mamata-led TMC candidate Rabiul Alam Chowdhury, rival TMC candidate Safiuzzaman Sheikh; Congress nominee Mohammad Abdullahil Kafi and CPI(M)’s Syed Asad Ali.
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.