Violence in West Bengal has been a constant this election season. Like the previous, the 6th phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections taking place Sunday has already witnessed incidents of violence in the state. One BJP worker and a Trinamool Congress worker were found dead in different parts of West Bengal. Raman Singh was found dead the night before Jhargram went to polls on Sunday.
West Bengal: BJP worker Raman Singh found dead last night in Gopiballabpur, Jhargram. More details awaited. pic.twitter.com/MVAdDUOrn0
— ANI (@ANI) May 12, 2019
The body of a Trinamool worker was found in Kanthi’s Maehara area on Sunday morning. The area comes under the Contai Lok Sabha seat.
In another separate incident, two BJP workers were shot at in Bhagabanpur of East Medinipur. Ananta Guchait and Ranjit Maity are undergoing treatment at a local hospital.
West Bengal: Two BJP workers Ananta Guchait & Ranjit Maity shot at last night in Bhagabanpur, East Medinipur. Both the injured admitted to hospital. More details awaited.
— ANI (@ANI) May 12, 2019
BJP’ Raman Singh’s body has been sent for post mortem and a probe has been ordered. The BJP has alleged he was attacked by Trinamool workers. However, after the preliminary investigation, the local police say there are no injury marks on him. They say he suffered a seizure, which caused his death.
Meanwhile, the Trinamool worker who was found dead in Contai has been identified as Sudhakar Maiti. According to sources, he was visiting a sick relative at the Kanthi Sub-Divisional Hospital on Saturday night after which he went missing.
Around 10:30 pm, the police were informed that Maiti has been brought to the same hospital. However, the doctor declared him brought dead. Though he was an active Left member, he had recently moved towards the ruling Trinamool Congress. Police have started a probe into the incident.
Eight seats in West Bengal, namely Tamluk, Kanthi, Ghatal, Jhargram, Medinipur, Purulia, Bankura and Bishnupur, are voting in the 6th phase of the Lok Sabha election on Sunday.
Shockingly, such violence continues even though the strength of paramilitary personnel in the state goes up to 750 companies or 75,000.
Sporadic incidents of similar violence were reported in the previous five phases in different parts of West Bengal.
A BJP worker named Prashant Sharma was brutally beaten up by some unidentified people in Frasor Road during phase 5 of the ongoing elections. Similarly, BJP candidate from Barrackpore, Arjun Singh, was reportedly attacked by goons associated with the Trinamool Congress. BJP District President in Hooghly, Pranab Mondal Saha, had alleged that he was thrashed by Trinamool goons while he was on his way to meet a fellow member of the party Khokon Biswas.
Moreover, there were reports of massive violence from Asansol in the fourth phase of elections. Crude bombs had been found at a polling booth in Krishnanagar, West Bengal and also bombs have been recovered from a polling booth in Santipur, Nadia district.
Threats, intimidations, bomb attacks, proxy voting have also been recorded in some of the Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal during the third phase of Lok Sabha elections.
Similarly, TMC workers had clashed with BJP workers inside a polling booth in Chopra, Darjeeling.
Incidentally, the first phase of the Lok Sabha polls was no different for West Bengal, Where elections are often greeted with violent skirmishes and clashes between competing parties. Violence and rampant polling malpractice were reported from Cooch Behar and Alipurduar, that had gone to polls in the first phase of the elections.
