NEW DELHI: Bhowanipore constituency witnessed high-voltage drama as chief minister Mamata Banerjee and her arch-rival Suvendu Adhikari landed in the same polling booth area at the same time, taking swipes at one another without any direct interaction.As voting for the second phase began on Wednesday in West Bengal, Banerjee and Adhikari traded barbs at each without any direct interaction.Banerjee broke convention of voting in the afternoon this time and hit the ground before 8 am, signalling the political stakes attached to the constituency and the larger battle for south Bengal.Though they did not come face-to-face or exchange courtesies, the two rival candidates were briefly in the same area in ward number 70 of Chakraberia, where Banerjee was seated outside a local party office after receiving complaints of alleged intimidation of local TMC leaders.As Banerjee remained on the verandah of the party office as Adhikari arrived, accompanied by a large contingent of central forces personnel, and launched an attack on the chief minister, claiming she had realised that “not a single vote” was coming her way.Banerjee alleges ‘poll rigging’, Adhikari dismisses claimBanerjee accused the BJP of trying to rig the elections by using central forces, police observers and election officials.“BJP wants to rig this election. Elections in West Bengal are usually peaceful. Is there goonda raj here?” Bengal CMsaid.“Several observers have come from outside and are acting as per the BJP’s directions. They are going to police stations and creating pressure. They are calling for the arrest of all TMC agents. My party’s youth president was picked up this morning and later released,” she alleged.Meanwhile, Adhikari refuted the chief minister’s claim as a sign of “frustration”, saying that Banerjee was “scared” because state police no longer controlled the polling process.“Mamata is scared. Her police have been replaced by central forces, which is why she is scared. The EC has deployed CAPFs here, so if she has any problem, she should approach them. Why have 40–50 people come with her?” Adhikari said.Adhikari also accused the TMC chief of moving around with “50–60 goons” despite prohibitory orders under section 163 being in force.“Banerjee is a candidate. She can certainly visit booths. But why this ‘goodagardi’ (hooliganism)? I have complained to the Kolkata DEO. No one will be allowed to indulge in intimidation this time,” he said.‘These are not voters but outsiders’Later in the day, Adhikari also alleged that he was surrounded and an attempt was made to attack him by TMC supporters during his visit to a polling booth. According to him, the incident took place when he arrived to inspect a polling station, following which a group of TMC supporters raised slogans of “Jai Bengal” and allegedly surrounded him.“I am visiting the booth”The situation escalated on the ground, prompting intervention by security personnel deployed at the site. Central forces allegedly resorted to a lathi charge to disperse the crowd and bring the situation under control.Polling began at 7 am across key districts including Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, and North and South 24 Parganas, with voters queuing up early at several booths. More than 3.2 crore electors are eligible to vote, with 41,001 polling stations under tight security and webcasting surveillance.Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to voters to turn out in record numbers, particularly urging women and young people to participate and strengthen democracy.The phase is seen as decisive, covering the TMC’s traditional stronghold in south Bengal, where it had dominated in 2021. For the BJP, making gains here remains critical to mounting a serious challenge. Results will be announced on May 4.