BJP, TMC supporters clash in Bengal's Cooch Behar, several injured
What's the story
A clash between supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the incumbent Trinamool Congress in West Bengal's Cooch Behar district resulted in several injuries, including those of police personnel, on Tuesday evening.
The skirmish broke out shortly after a public meeting led by Union Minister of State Nisith Pramanik ended, while a rally headed by state minister Udayan Guha was set to begin nearby.
Videos from the site have gone viral triggering a political slugfest between the two parties.
At Dinhata Bazar
Police resort to lathi-charge to control the situation
The incident took place in the Dinhata Bazar area around 8.30pm.
To control the situation, the police had to resort to lathi-charge.
Several people, including a sub-divisional police officer, were reportedly injured when they intervened to stop the two sides, who exchanged blows.
Several shops were also damaged in the violence.
This is reportedly the first clash between supporters of the rival parties in West Bengal since the announcement of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections.
Blame game
Accusations fly as violence escalates
Pramanik, the local BJP MP, has claimed that while he was leaving stones were hurled from the location of the TMC's rally at his convoy.
He accused Guha of instigating the assault on BJP activists and instructing police to detain them.
Guha refuted these claims as "baseless," and said that it was the BJP supporters who initiated the stone-throwing and even fired arrows at the TMC's rally.
Notably, both leaders admitted being present during the altercation.
Governor's statement
Governor seeks report from head of state police
Following the incident, Governor CV Ananda Bose requested a report from the head of state police about the dispute.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has also asked for a report on this matter.
Meanwhile, the TMC declared a 24-hour shutdown at Dinhata starting Wednesday morning and began a protest outside Dinhata police station demanding Guha's arrest.
Police security detail has been strengthened in the commercial area where the conflict took place.
BJP's reaction
BJP leader calls incident 'state-sponsored' crime
Following the incident, BJP leader Amit Malviya called the incident in Dinhata a "state-sponsored" crime.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), he shared a video of the incident and wrote, "TMC goons attack Union Minister and BJP's Coochbehar candidate Nishith Pramanik... Udayan Guha, minister in Mamata Banerjee's cabinet, lead the gang of armed criminals...This kind of state-sponsored crime signals complete breakdown of L&O [law and order]."
Twitter Post
Read: Malviya's post here
TMC goons attack Union Minister and BJP’s Coochbehar candidate Nishith Pramanik. The cars in his convoy were vandalised. Udayan Guha, minister in Mamata Banerjee’s cabinet, lead the gang of armed criminals…
— Amit Malviya (मोदी का परिवार) (@amitmalviya) March 19, 2024
This kind of state sponsored crime signals complete breakdown of L&O. pic.twitter.com/u0UhWiyH2T