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KOLKATA: Bhowanipore yet turned its backmost Monday connected Mamata Banerjee aft 3 presumption arsenic the Bengal CM was sliced retired of her Kolkata location turf successful a knife-edge contention that saw her protege-turned-foe Suvendu Adhikari vanquish her by 15,105 votes.Mamata struggled to judge the outcome, claiming she and her TMC had been defeated "by force", the predetermination process manipulated and votes "looted" by Adhikari's BJP. Worse, she alleged she had been assaulted by BJP activists and cardinal forces arsenic she made her mode retired of Sakhawat Memorial High School counting centre aft astir 5 hours there.Also Read |Lotus blooms successful West Bengal: 10 moves that helped BJP breach Mamata Banerjee’s fortressMamata stayed enactment since trends showed her trailing by implicit 10,994 votes aft 18th circular of counting successful the afternoon.
In the end, EC pegged the tally astatine 73,917 votes for Adhikari and 58,812 for Mamata.Bhowanipore, centrestage of WB's governmental battlefield, was a cauldron Monday, with the ambiance surcharged by allegations, counter-allegations and thoroughfare showdo-wns arsenic tallies swung wildly done the day.Early trends favoured Adhikari, who surged up successful the opening rounds. But aft the 3rd round, Mamata bounced back.
She established her dominance by the seventh round, astatine 1 constituent starring by much than 19,000 votes - triggering murmurs that the contention mightiness tilt decisively successful her favour.
That perception, however, proved short-lived. Adhikari, claiming Mamata's surge was driven by votes from a minority-dominated pocket, mounted a accelerated comeback. By the 12th round, the spread shrunk to conscionable implicit 7,000 votes and aboriginal tightened further to 5,300, mounting the signifier for a nail-biting decorativeness that echoed the strength of their 2021 face-off, wherever Mamata mislaid to Adhikari successful Nandigram.
She'd won Bhowanipore successful a bypoll aboriginal that year.Tensions peaked further Monday erstwhile TMC alleged that its Bhowanipore counting agents had been attacked by BJP and pushed out. The main minister, who earlier appealed to her workers to "fight similar a tiger cub" and not to permission the counting tables till sunset, rushed to the venue.As her convoy reached the centre astir 3.30pm, BJP supporters erupted successful chants of "thief, thief" and "go back," turning the agelong into a cauldron of hostility.
Adhikari arrived astir the aforesaid time. TMC wide caput and Mamata's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, too, reached the tract amid allegations that immoderate BJP supporters spat successful his absorption and hurled abuses earlier helium was forced to determination out.Also Read |'Immoral, illegal': Mamata Banerjee alleges BJP 'looted' much than 100 seats; vows to 'bounce back'Mamata stayed astatine the centre till 8pm earlier she was escorted retired by cardinal forces. As she came out, she repeated allegations astir being "assaulted" and claimed BJP "looted implicit 100 seats". Putting up a brave face, however, she vowed that TMC would travel backmost to office.TMC offices fell silent. "We person thing to say," said aworker, dilatory unpinning the enactment awesome from his shirt.
