Clashes in Bengal’s Barrackpore as BJP enforces shutdown to protest attack on MP | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Clashes in Bengal’s Barrackpore as BJP enforces shutdown to protest attack on MP

Kolkata | By
Sep 02, 2019 12:07 PM IST

Supporters of the BJP and ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) came to blows in Subhasnagar and Barrackpore’s deputy commissioner of police Ajay Thakur was injured after stones were allegedly thrown at him in the morning in Nonachandanpukur area.

Clashes were reported on Monday at several places under West Bengal’s Barrackpore parliamentary constituency during the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) 12-hour shutdown to protest an alleged attack on its member of Parliament Arjun Singh.

BJP National general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya meets BJP Lok Sabha MP from Barrackpore Arjun Singh in hospital as he got injured during a protest against TMC in North 24 Parganas on Sunday. Arjun Singh alleged that he was attacked and his car was vandalised during the protest.
BJP National general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya meets BJP Lok Sabha MP from Barrackpore Arjun Singh in hospital as he got injured during a protest against TMC in North 24 Parganas on Sunday. Arjun Singh alleged that he was attacked and his car was vandalised during the protest.

Supporters of the BJP and ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) came to blows in Subhasnagar and Barrackpore’s deputy commissioner of police Ajay Thakur was injured after stones were allegedly thrown at him in the morning in Nonachandanpukur area.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

Thakur came under attack when strike supporters and police clashed as officials were trying to disperse the crowd blocking a road in the area.

Supporters of the BJP also erected roadblocks at Ichapore, Kankinara, Barrackpore and on National Highway 34 at Amdanga. The Kalyani Expressway was blocked at a couple of places in Panpur and Kairapur. In Shyamnagar, the BJP’s workers blocked the road leading to traffic snarls. Ferry services were also affected at Chuchura, Chandanagar, Naihati, Serampore and Barrackpore.

The opposition BJP has called for the dawn-to-dusk shutdown after Arjun Singh, the Barrackpore MP, and nine police officials were injured in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district in a clash between its supporters and the TMC on Sunday.

Singh, who was admitted to a private hospital in Kolkata’s Salt Lake, has alleged that he was hit by Barrackpore police commissioner Manoj Verma. The police, however, have refuted Singh’s claim, saying that he was hit by a brick thrown by his supporters.

“The TMC is unleashing terror in the area. The ruling party’s leaders know they will be unseated and therefore they have become desperate,” said Sayantan Basu, general secretary of the state unit of the BJP.

Earlier in the day, a number of shops did not open and the roads had thinner traffic than on other days as the opposition party enforced the shutdown from 6am. Some of the industrial units such as jute mills were also affected as workers did not report for work.

Supporters of the BJP blocked railway tracks at Kankinara, which is a part of the Barrackpore constituency, and erected roadblocks in several parts of the area.

There were some reports of BJP supporters asking shopkeepers to down the shutters their shops. Television channels also reported a few instances of shutdown supporters forcing commuters to get off auto-rickshaws in the town.

Officials said a large number of policemen have been deployed in different areas to control the law and order situation.

“If an MP has no security, what can common people expect? The administration is yet to arrest the actual culprits. The attack took place in front of the police,” BJP leader Anupam Hazra said.

Hazra, the former Trinamool Congress MP who contested the recently-concluded LS polls from Jadavpur constituency with a BJP ticket, said the shutdown is a symbolic protest against this culture of violence.

“If you are a worker of any party other than the ruling party, you are not safe in this state,” claimed Hazra.

The BJP’s working president JP Nadda on Monday tweeted his criticism of the alleged attack on Arjun Singh and his son Paban Singh, who is a legislator.

The BJP has also called for agitation in front of offices of superintendents of police in all the districts of the state to protest the attack on Singh. State-level BJP leaders are supposed to attend these agitations.

In some parts of the constituency, supporters of the ruling Trinamool tried to keep public life normal to foil the general strike.

North 24 Parganas district TMC leader and state minister Jyoti Priya Mallick accused Singh of lying.

“He asked his own men to injure his head and blamed the police,” remarked North 24 Parganas district TMC leader and minister Jyoti Priya Mallick.

Taking a jibe at the BJP MP, urban development minister and Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim said on Monday, “I knew that Arjun Singh used to crack the heads of people. Who would crack his head?”

Barrackpore has witnessed frequent incidents of violence since the Lok Sabha elections when Singh, a former four-time legislator, switched to the BJP after he was denied a ticket for the Lok Sabha, and defeated the TMC candidate.

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Arvind Kejriwal News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On