A West Bengal town, 64 kms from Kolkata in the Hooghly district has been on the boil since Wednesday night after a BJP victory march was attacked by TMC goons and the BJP worker leading the victory march and chanting Jai Shree Ram was brutally attacked by ruling TMC’s men.
Clashes broke out between the workers of the BJP and the TMC over chanting of “Jai Shri Ram” at Gurap village in West Bengal’s Hooghly district and one person was critically injured after being hit by a bullet fired accidentally from a police revolver.
BJP supporters who participated in a victory rally at Gurap’s Saturia were attacked, allegedly by TMC goons. Sadhan Das Baul, who had led the Jai Sri Ram chant at the rally, was beaten up at Bathangeria-Anspora village in Dhaniakhali after returning from the rally. He received injuries on his head, chest and neck.
After the incident, reportedly, a police team from Dhaniakhali police station set off for Bathangoria when a group of BJP men chanting ‘Jai Shree Ram’ stopped the convoy and demanded an answer for TMC’s attack on Das for chanting Jai Shree Ram. It is during this incident that a BJP supporter called Jaichand Malik tried to snatch a service revolver from a policeman and in the scuffle, a bullet ended up hitting him in the chest.
Post these incidents, on Thursday, the village remained on tenterhooks when hundreds of BJP supporters marched into the Gurap police station and indulged in a scuffle with the policemen. Reportedly, tires were set on fire and stones were also pelted. BJP was demanding the arrest of the policeman who fired at the BJP supporter earlier.
BJP has alleged that Sadhan Das Baul got injured while trying to save other BJP supporters from the police firing and have disputed the police’s version that he got injured accidentally. The party has also alleged that the TMC led a planned attack against the BJP.
On Thursday, a bandh-like atmosphere prevailed in both Gurap and Dhaniakhali. A police jeep was damaged when cops tried to remove blockades on the Chinsurah-Dhaniakhali Road.
“Trinamool leaders in Gurap and Dhaniakhali are neck-deep in corruption. They have built huge houses for themselves with cut money. We never imagined we would have to face such attacks simply for marching in a victory rally. We will not be cowed down by such attacks,” said BJP leader Nirmal Ghosh, who led Thursday’s gherao of Gurap police station.
Dhaniakhali Trinamool MLA and state minister Asima Patra rejected allegations that Trinamool men had attacked BJP supporters. “This is not a political incident. Trinamool is in no way involved in this,” she said.
According to Indian Express, three cases have been filed so far in the case. One for attacking the police and snatching revolver, another based on a complaint filed by Mali’s relative against police, and a third is a suo moto case by Gurap police against BJP supporters for attacking the police and damaging vehicles during Thursday’s protest.
The chant of Jai Shree Ram has become one of political upheaval in West Bengal with TMC goons lashing out at those chanting it. Recently, 3 BJP workers including a 14-year-old boy were shot for chanting Jai Shree Ram.
Recently a BJP worker who was chanting Jai Shri Ram while preparing for a victory procession of the party after winning elections was allegedly stabbed to death by TMC workers.
Mamata Banerjee had also got 10 people arrested for chanting ‘Jai Shree Ram’ at her. She had claimed that she was being abused.
