Allegations of Trinamul’s rigging and violence marred bypolls to single wards in Bongaon and Asansol on Sunday.

Opposition parties blocked roads at various locations and gheraoed police stations for hours demanding re-poll and claiming Trinamul had made a “mockery” of democracy.

The Opposition blamed Bengal’s ruling party for allegedly adopting unfair means and denying people their franchise in ward 14 of Bongaon town and ward 6 of Asansol.

In Bongaon, two BJP MLAs — Swapan Majumdar and Ashok Kirtania — and their CISF security personnelwere allegedly roughed up by Trinamul supporters when they went to polling booths in Gandhi Pally under ward 14.

Agitation by BJP workers. Chanchal Pal

“The Trinamul leadership mobilised goons in the ward to unleash panic among voters.... Anyone who protested was denied voting rights, threatened and beaten up. Even women were not spared. I went to appeal to police but was attacked by goons outside Vivekanda primary school,” said Majumdar.

Sources said that many BJP and CPM activists, including women, were “thrashed” at least three polling stations by Trinamul supporters.

BJP supporters blocked Jessore road for about two hours and gheraoed Bongaon police station till evening.

The Congress and CPM blocked roads at Gandhi pally and Bata for two hours. The CPM and Congress later withdrew polling agents to protest the “malpractices”.

Refuting rigging charges, Trinamul’s Bongaon organisational committee president and MLA Biswajit Das accused BJP MLA Majumdar of stoking unrest. “Majumdar threatened many people over the phone from Saturday night. We have filed a police complaint against him,” he said.

In Asansol, BJP's Jamuria MLA Laxman Chandra Ghorui was also allegedly roughed up by Trinamul supporters who stopped him from entering the civic area for being an “outsider”, which led to a clash in which two BJP supporters were reportedly injured.

Opposition parties alleged that their polling agents were beaten up and forced to leave after armed Trinamul supporters captured polling stations and police stayed “mute spectators”. BJP later protested on the SDO office premises, demanding a re-poll and blocked the national highway at JK Nagar square in Raniganj.

Civic polls were held in both towns in February. Trinamul formed boards in both. But in Bongaon, the bypoll was needed after ward 14’s Trinamul councillor Dilip Das died.

In Asansol, the bypoll in ward 6 was needed since elected Trinamul councillor Sanjoy Chakraborty resigned reportedly to pave the way for mayor Bidhan Upadhyay to be elected. Sources said Upadhyay, party MLA from Barabani, who did not contest the civic polls earlier, was handpicked by the Trinamul leadership as mayor.

BJP's Asansol organising district president Dilip De said: “Trinamul knew that if people were allowed to vote the mayor would lose his chair. So with the blind support of police and administration, they captured nearly all booths.”

Trinamul leader Binod Nunia refuted the charge. “The BJP has no support base here anymore. Some of its leaders tried to draw the attention of the media to mislead people.”