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Protests, blockades in Barrackpore in BJP’s 12-hour bandh after leader’s murder
The bandh was called after a a BJP leader was shot dead by some masked assailants at Titagarh in North 24 Parganas on Sunday.
Bharatiya Janata Party workers and supporters staged protests and blocked roads at multiple points in Barrackpore and adjoining areas in North 24 Parganas as a part of the 12-hour bandh called by the party on Monday, police said.
On Sunday, a BJP leader Manish Shukla was shot dead by some masked assailants at Titagarh in North 24 Parganas. Shukla was also an outgoing councillor of the Titagarh municipality. Elections are due in around 110 civic bodies in the state.
BJP national general secretary and election observer for West Bengal, Kailash Vijayvargiya has demanded a CBI probe into the incident.
While a section of the shops was closed and there were less people on the roads public transport were operating normally. Large contingents of police including RAF personnel have been deployed to maintain law and order, a senior police official in Barrackpore said.
Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar took up the issue and summoned the home secretary and Director General of Police to the Raj Bhawan at 10 am on Monday.
Shukla, who defected from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) two years ago, was a popular organisational leader. The news of his death led to tension in large parts of the Barrackpore Lok Sabha constituency of which Titagarh is a part.
TMC’s Panihati legislator, Nirmal Ghosh, said the ruling party had no role in the attack. “This is a fallout of rivalry inside the BJP,” he said.
