Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday raised doubts about the final figures of voter turnout in the first two phases of the Lok Sabha polls and expressed the apprehension that the BJP might have already tampered with EVMs.

"You (the Election Commission) had earlier provided a different figure on voter turnout after the completion of the first and second phase elections. Yesterday, I learned about the sudden 5.75 per cent jump in turnout. It is my apprehension... this increase indicates manipulation in the EVM to favour the BJP in constituencies where the party received fewer votes than the Opposition," the chief minister said in her election rally at Farakka, which is in the Malda Dakshin Lok Sabha constituency.

"Now, will you (BJP) cheat the election process, too?" asked the Trinamool Congress chairperson.

The Election Commission made public the voter turnout of the first two phases of the polling on Tuesday evening. The announcement came 11 days after the first phase of the polling and four days after the second phase. A total of 102 seats went to the polls in the first phase, while 88 seats were contested in the second phase.

According to the final figures, the voter turnout for the first and second phases was 66.14 per cent and 66.71 per cent, respectively.

Within hours of the release of the percentages, several Trinamool leaders began casting aspersions on the turnout figures because of their divergence from the "approximate trend" that the poll panel had shared on April 19 and 26 after the completion of the poll process.

The tentative trend in the first phase of voting was 60 per cent, which means the final figure is 6.14 per cent more. Similarly, the approximate trend for the second phase was 60.96 per cent, about 5.75 per cent lower than the final figure.

"The sudden 5.75 per cent increase in voter turnout cannot be possible. You have to clarify this to the people as they are worried about it," Mamata insisted.

Some experts also expressed their apprehensions about the change in the disclosure of voter turnout data — from the total number of votes cast (practised even in 2019) to turnout percentages.

"I urge the Election Commission to disclose all data, including the total number of voters and the number of votes cast, to alleviate the concerns of citizens. I request you to disclose all information related to voter turnout to assure the public that you (EC) are working independently, not as a commission favouring the BJP," Mamata added.

"We all know that about 19 lakh EVMs that went missing, and there is a possibility that the BJP tampered with the EVMs by gaining unauthorised access to the counting halls (strong rooms) and replacing them with manipulated ones," she continued.

Later in the day, during her second public meeting in Murshidabad's Burwan, Mamata urged all political parties to voice their concerns and question the EC about the sudden increase in the polling percentage. She also emphasised the need to guard the EVMs and strong rooms in the next five phases of elections.

"I urge all Opposition parties across the country to meet the EC and inquire about the sudden increase in the voter turnout. I request you to safeguard the EVMs in the strong rooms during the next phases of the elections," the chief minister concluded.

Mamata also stated that her party would immediately write to the Election Commission, seeking an explanation on this issue.

Kunal Ghosh

The Trinamool Congress on Wednesday removed Kunal Ghosh as the party's state general secretary, within hours of him sharing the stage with Kolkata North BJP candidate Tapas Roy at an apolitical programme and heaping praises on him.

The BJP had nominated Roy — who was the Trinamool MLA from Baranagar — to take on Trinamool's five-term MP Sudip Bandopadhyay.