Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Saturday sought Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s resignation over firing by central forces at Sitalkuchi in Cooch Behar, killing 4 individuals. Banerjee, talking at a public assembly at Baduria in North 24 Parganas, stated she can be leaving for Cooch Behar after attending rallies, and would go to the spot the place central forces opened fireplace throughout polling.
The 4 individuals have been killed as central forces opened fireplace allegedly after coming below assault from locals, who “attempted to snatch their rifles”, police stated. The Election Commission ordered stopping the voting train at polling station quantity 126 in Sitalkuchi the place the incident occurred when polling was underway.
According to sources, the preliminary report submitted by EC’s particular police observer Vivek Dubey stated a mob of round 350-400 folks had gheraoed the central forces, following which they fired in “self-defence”.
The incident led to violence in the realm the place bombs have been hurled, prompting central forces to baton-charge to carry the state of affairs below management. In one other incident, an 18-year-old voter, Ananda Barman, was gunned down outdoors sales space quantity 85 in Pathantuli, additionally in Sitalkuchi, after clashes broke out between activists of the ruling TMC and the BJP.
Appealing to folks to stay calm, Banerjee alleged that central policemen shot lifeless folks standing in a queue to vote and demanded “Shah should resign” owing accountability for the incident “which is dastardly, cold-blooded and unprecedented”. She stated the TMC would carry out protest rallies all through the state on Sunday and requested get together activists to put on black badges and peacefully protest the killings from 2 pm to 4 pm.
Earlier talking at Hingalganj, the chief minister claimed “the central forces opened fire on people standing in a queue to vote, killing four in Sitalkuchi.” She stated she had lengthy apprehended that the forces’ would act in such a fashion. “As BJP knows it has lost the people’s mandate, they are conspiring to kill people,” Banerjee added. She alleged this was a part of a conspiracy hatched by the Union residence minister.
“However, I would ask everyone to remain calm and cast their vote peacefully. Avenge the deaths by defeating them,” she stated. Banerjee stated that the demise toll in this election was far larger than that in the Panchayat elections held three years in the past. “If you count the total number of killings since the elections began some 17-18 persons were killed. At least 12 people belonged to our party alone.” Banerjee stated the EC too owed the folks an evidence on immediately’s incident.
“We are not in charge of the administration, but the EC is,” she stated. “They have removed the senior IPS Surajit Kar Purakaystha. They have removed my OSD Ashok Chakraborty, who is a lower ranked retired officer from RPF. Yet the EC bringing in retired officers to oversee polls here,” she stated.
Condoling the deaths, Prime Minister Narendra Modi requested the Election Commission to take stern motion in opposition to these liable for the incident and blamed the ruling TMC for perpetrating violence in the course of the polls. He additionally accused Banerjee of instigating folks in opposition to the central forces. “What happened in Cooch Behar is unfortunate and sad. I extend my condolences to the bereaved families. Mamata Didi and her TMC goons have become jittery because of ground swell of support for BJP,” Modi instructed an election rally in North Bengal’s Siliguri.
In the Ganguly Bagan space in Jadavpur constituency, the sales space agent of CPI(M) candidate Sujan Chakraborty was reportedly attacked by a “fake voter”, who threw chilli powder at her, the officers stated. A central police contingent was rushed to the spot following the incident.
In Bangor in South 24 Parganas, clashes have been reported between ISF and TMC employees after the previous alleged the ruling get together was not permitting their polling brokers to enter the sales space. In Chanditala in Hooghly, CPI(M) activists scuffled with TMC supporters outdoors a sales space.
Later, at a press convention in Kolkata, TMC leaders termed the Cooch Behar incident as “preplanned murder”, and likewise referred to as for the resignation of Shah. TMC Lok Sabha MP Sougata Roy stated the get together condemns the unprovoked firing by central forces on harmless folks. “We want the Election Commission to come out with video footage of the firing to make people aware of the truth,” Roy stated.
“Modi and Shah cannot accept their imminent defeat in the ongoing elections in West Bengal. This (firing incident) has happened at the behest of Shah,” stated senior TMC chief Subrata Mukherjee, including this was a “preplanned murder committed to create panic among the common people” in order that they develop into reluctant to forged votes in subsequent phases.
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