NHRC member says Bengal police ‘threatening’ victims of post-poll violence

During his meeting with the Murshidabad superintendent of police, Rashid said that cops are intimidating the victims of violence.

A member of the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC) team which visited West Bengal on Thursday to interact with the victims of post-poll violence claimed that people who voted for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were tortured by the police, according to news agency ANI.

Mother of a BJP worker being stretchered off for medical assistance following the death of her son seen in this file photo fro,m May 2021. A NHRC team is currently investigation allegations of post-poll violence in Bengal. (ANI)

National Commission for Minorities vice-chairman and member of the NHRC team, Atif Rasheed, said that police are allegedly threatening the victims of post-poll violence in West Bengal and asking them not to file a complaint.

During his meeting with the Murshidabad superintendent of police, Rashid said that cops are intimidating the victims of violence. “The public is scared of the police. Their fault is they voted for the BJP. Police are threatening victims not to file a complaint,” Rasheed was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Rashid, who is on a three-day visit to West Bengal to investigate the post-poll violence in the state, is scheduled to visit Malda and Murshidabad. He claimed that during his previous visit to the state on June 29, he was attacked in Jadavpur when the NHRC team was investigating the allegation of post-poll violence.

A team from the Union ministry of home affairs visited the areas affected by the alleged post-poll violence after such incidents were reported following Trinamool Congress’ victory in the recently concluded West Bengal assembly elections.