The Election Commission has cut short campaigning for the last round of voting in West Bengal after the latest round of poll-related violence in the state. Campaigning in nine Bengal seats will end at 10 pm Thursday, the election commission announced on Wednesday evening. The poll panel has also removed two top Bengal officers: additional director general of police in-charge of CID Rajiv Kumar and the principal home secretary Atri Bhattacharya. The decisions followed marathon meetings at Nirvachan Sadan, the EC headquarters, after senior election officers and observers indicted the Mamata Banerjee government’s handling. Nine Bengal seats - Dum Dum, Barasat, Basirhat, Jaynagar, Mathurapur, Jadavpur, Diamond Harbour, South and North Kolkata- are to vote on 19 May in the last round of the bitterly-fought national elections.

Source: Hindustan Times May 15, 2019 14:41 UTC