The counting of votes for the Falta assembly repolling has begun, and as expected, BJP candidate Debangshu Panda has secured a handsome lead of over 69,000 votes after fifteen rounds. The counting is underway, and a total of 21 rounds will be counted on Sunday.
After the fifteenth round of counting in Falta, Panda is cruising with 103,089 votes, far ahead of his nearest rival – CPI(M)'s Sambhu Nath Kurmi, who has 33,416 votes.
Jahangir Khan, considered a close aide of Abhishek Banerjee and associated with the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), slipped to the fourth position after the sixth round, managing only 5,134 votes. Interestingly, he had pulled himself out of the electoral race just two days before the repolling.
Falta has traditionally remained a stronghold of the TMC since the party came to power in West Bengal in 2011. However, during the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, multiple booths in the constituency came under scrutiny following allegations of electoral irregularities. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had accused ruling party workers of large-scale electoral malpractice in the area. The Election Commission of India had cancelled the earlier polling process following allegations of voter intimidation, suspected EVM irregularities and procedural violations reported from multiple booths.
Following the party’s electoral setback, there was speculation that the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) would make aggressive efforts to revive its cadre base in Falta, a constituency traditionally considered one of the party’s strongholds since 2011.
However, in the lead-up to polling, no senior TMC leader campaigned for candidate Jahangir Khan. Neither Mamata Banerjee nor Abhishek Banerjee addressed rallies in the constituency. This came as a surprise as Falta falls under the Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha seat represented by Abhishek, who is widely regarded as the party’s second-in-command.
Jahangir Khan had earlier grabbed headlines after openly challenging IPS officer Ajay Pal Sharma, who was brought in from Uttar Pradesh as a poll observer ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections.
Following the party’s electoral setback, there was speculation that the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) would make aggressive efforts to revive its cadre base in Falta, a constituency traditionally considered one of the party’s strongholds since 2011.
However, in the lead-up to polling, no senior TMC leader campaigned for candidate Jahangir Khan. Neither Mamata Banerjee nor Abhishek Banerjee addressed rallies in the constituency. This came as a surprise as Falta falls under the Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha seat represented by Abhishek, who is widely regarded as the party’s second-in-command.
Jahangir Khan had earlier grabbed headlines after openly challenging IPS officer Ajay Pal Sharma, who was brought in from Uttar Pradesh as a poll observer ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections.
Source: India Today