Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal raised significant concerns regarding the integrity of the electoral process in West Bengal, stating that the election outcome hinges on activities within voting rooms. His remarks followed the Supreme Court's decision to not issue further orders on a plea from the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) challenging the Election Commission's (EC) circular about deploying central government personnel for vote counting. Sibal clarified that the TMC's petition did not question the circular's validity but sought its proper implementation, which mandates the presence of both central and state government officials during the counting process. He emphasized that the Supreme Court directed the circular's implementation 'in letter and spirit.' Additionally, Sibal questioned the necessity of the large deployment of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) in the state, likening the situation to a war. He also pointed out issues regarding the preservation of CCTV footage from polling booths, which is currently retained for only 45 days, and indicated that this matter would be taken up in court. Sibal stressed the need for a 'level playing field' to maintain public confidence in the electoral process.