Political clashes rock Kolkata neighbourhoods

Kolkata: Three incidents of political clashes were reported in the city in the past 48 hours.

In the first incident, a BJP worker was beaten with an iron rod and injured in the head in the Labutala area close to Sealdah Railway Station under the Muchipara police station area. The victim, Biplab Nag, is a resident of Ward 50 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and is considered close to BJP Baranagar MLA Sajal Ghosh. Local BJP functionaries have alleged that local miscreants reportedly affiliated with the Trinamool Congress was behind the attack.

According to local sources, on Wednesday night, Biplab was talking with some acquaintances in the Lebutala area when a group of young men attacked them with iron rods, striking Biplab on the head from behind. The victim collapsed on the spot, bleeding, and was taken to the hospital by local residents. He is currently receiving medical treatment and has received multiple stitches.

The injured BJP worker claims that he and his family have been receiving various threats even before the elections. Biplab stated that a reception-cum-felicitation for MLA Ghosh, also the KMC councilor of Ward 50, is scheduled next Sunday and party workers were discussing preparations for this event on Wednesday night when the attack took place.

BJP MLA Ghosh alleged that the Trinamool planned the attack to disrupt the reception. However, TMC netas denied the allegation and called it a local dispute. Muchipara police have started an investigation.

TMC councilor Biswarup Dey of Ward 48 claimed that one of their workers is in critical condition and receiving treatment at the Medical College. ”I don’t want to politicize this, but our booth agent, Dipan Saha, was first beaten by some boys from ward 50. When his brother arrived at the scene after hearing the news, he was also assaulted,” he said.

In another incident, an early morning armed home invasion took place in the Parnasree area. A local resident and his son were assaulted inside their residence by an alleged Trinamool-backed mob carrying iron rods and sticks.

When a neighbour rushed to intervene upon hearing their cries for help, the armed miscreants threatened the families brandishing weapons. The attackers demanded an extortion payout of Rs 10 lakh, threatening to set the residential property on fire if the cash was not delivered.

The Sinthi police station area witnessed an assault in a residential building on Dum Dum Road.

According to police sources, a group of local miscreants, all TMC turned BJP men, gathered outside a woman’s house in the Sinthi PS area in a residential building on Dum Dum Road, shouting continuous abuses to insult her modesty. The boundary wall and entrance door were kicked repeatedly, and the property’s letter box was smashed. The attackers issued explicit death threats against the complainant and her husband before fleeing.

Police have registered formal FIRs in all cases, initiating a multi-pronged hunt to track down the fleeing miscreants.