The BJP on Tuesday accused the ruling TMC in West Bengal of using violence in order to prevent its candidates from filing nominations for the upcoming Panchayat polls in the state. These polls will be held in three phases across 20 districts of the state, with the dates being 1st, 3rd and 5th May.
BJP Bengal’s secretary Ritesh Tiwari took to Twitter to allege that BJP’s South Murshidabad District President Gowrishankar Ghosh, and 50 other party workers were brutally injured in an attack by the TMC while filing nominations for the Murshidabad Jiyaganj block.
BJP’s National General Joint Secretary Shivprakash too accused the TMC of assaulting BJP workers and not providing the nomination forms:
https://twitter.com/shivprakashbjp/status/981177596582006784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Ghosh as per reports was assaulted using sticks and was chased by TMC goons till the railway station, after which he somehow managed to escape. He alleged that the police were mute spectators while the attack was taking place.
As per reports, violence was reported from districts like Birbhum, Murshidabad, Hooghly and Bankura on Tuesday. BJP district general secretary Kalosona Mondal alleged that he was attacked with a knife by TMC workers when he and other party workers were coming out of DM’s office after submitting a deputation against the ruling party.
BJP leader Surajit Ghosh alleged that they were attacked in presence of the police and questioned as to how could TMC workers bring sharp weapons in a government building.
Incidentally, the Congress too has accused the TMC of not letting opposition candidates file their nomination papers. As per West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the dates of the rural polls were announced suddenly, so that opposition parties could not file their nominations. Chowdhury has also alleged that the election has been reduced to a farce.
Another senior Congress leader of Bengal claimed that they won’t be able to field candidates in all the seats for polls, both in the Gram Panchayat and Zila Panchayat elections.