The Election Commission of India (ECI), on Monday, barred Abhishek Banerjee, the Trinamool Congress General Secretary and the party's Lok Sabha member, from entering the counting centre at Hastings in South Kolkata as he is not a candidate in the recently held two-phase Assembly elections in West Bengal.

As Abhishek Banerjee arrived at the counting center in Hastings, accompanied by his security team, an instruction was issued by the ECI to the returning officers and counting observers, prohibiting his entry into the premises, confirmed by an official from the Chief Electoral Officer's (CEO) office.