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Bengal Opposition blames TMC govt for violence, arson
Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPI (M) and Congress leaders alleged that the vandal caught on camera is a policeman and that the arson was staged to blame the Opposition.
Opposition parties blamed the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) for staging violence in West Bengal’s Malda during a nationwide strike on Wednesday to implicate them after a video purportedly showing a man vandalising private vehicles at the spot where eight vehicles were later set afire went viral.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPI (M) and Congress leaders alleged that the vandal caught on camera is a policeman and that the arson was staged to blame the Opposition.
Congress legislator Isha Khan Chowdhury cited the video and insisted that no activist of his party damaged the vehicles. “Police personnel committed the crime and blamed us,” said Chowdhury.
CPI (M) leader Md Salim blamed chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s “overenthusiastic police” for damaging cars and attacked people in Madla’s Sujapur. “TMC workers instigated the violence,” said Salim. He called Banerjee a stooge of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
“All trade unions in the country, except the one affiliated to the Rashtriya Shyamsevak Sangh supported the strike. And in Bengal, all parties except the TMC supported the bandh. The people can see who stands where,” he added.
Salim said as Opposition leader, Banerjee would call bandhs even based on rumours. “Arson was common. How many bandhs have the Marxists called since we were defeated in 2011?” asked Salim.
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury also blamed Banerjee for the violence. “By saying that she is opposed to the bandh, she sent a message to the police.”
The BJP’s West Bengal unit general secretary, Sayantan Basu, too, accused the TMC of staging the violence in Sujapur.
Malda police superintendent Alok Rajoria said that they were studying the video. “Action will be taken if any police personnel is found to be involved.”
Banerjee said that the government will not tolerate any violence. “Police will take action over the destruction of public property. The Left did nothing for Bengal during its 34-year rule...They want to get cheap publicity by calling bandhs and hurling bombs at buses,” she said accusing Left of the violence.
Earlier, Banerjee said that she supported the cause but was opposed to the general strike.
Basu said that the chief minister makes a statement in the morning and says something entirely different in the evening. “She spared those who burnt railway property [during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests last month]... [Benerjee is] talking about penalising vandals because whatever destruction was done on Wednesday was perpetrated by dissidents in her own party. She wants to teach them a lesson.”
