Mamata says EC acting at BJP’s behest after campaign in Bengal is cut short

On Wednesday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee attacked the Election Commission over its decision to end campaigning in the state a day early, accusing the poll body of acting under pressure from the BJP.

The EC order

Following poll-related violence in the state, the Commission ordered that campaigning for the nine seats voting on May 19 must stop at 10 pm on Thursday, one day ahead of schedule. Invoking Article 324 of the Constitution, it barred all election-related gatherings in the state. The decision came a day after violence at BJP president Amit Shah’s roadshow in Kolkata, which set off a war of words between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP.

The seats voting in the final round of the general election are Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Jadavpur, Diamond Harbour, Kolkata South and Kolkata North.

Mamata’s charges

Banerjee called the Commission biased and alleged it had drawn up the polling schedule to suit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaign plans, saying Modi had decided how many phases he wanted and the EC announced them accordingly. She said it was Modi’s and Amit Shah’s election, that state authorities had been kept in the dark, and that no action had been taken against Shah or those involved in the violence. She claimed the step followed Shah’s attack on the Commission at a press conference.

Congress question

Congress leader Ahmed Patel also criticised the decision. On Twitter he asked why, if the situation was serious enough to stop campaigning, the EC was waiting until the next day, and whether it was because the Prime Minister had rallies scheduled then.

What happened next

Votes were counted on 23 May 2019; the BJP won 303 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats and Narendra Modi was sworn in for a second term on 30 May 2019.

See also: election news.

Originally published on 16 May 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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