Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president in West Bengal, Dilip Ghosh, on Monday compared the political violence in West Bengal to the situation in Kashmir.
“Like the extremists pelt stones at the Amry and Police in Kashmir, they are doing the same to BJP workers in West Bengal. They have hit my cars several times,” Ghosh was seen saying on Bengali channel News18 Bangla.
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“Didimoni has turned the state into Kashmir. Terrorists and extremists are roaming freely here. To bring peace in West Bengal, the government needs to change. If BJP rules, everyone will realise what’s what.
“We have brought peace in states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. There’s no violence there. All the goons are either in jail or in other states like West Bengal,” the Medinipur MP added.
Ghosh’s remark has come in the background of the attack on BJP national president JP Nadda’s convoy. On his way to West Bengal’s Diamond Harbour to attend a party event, Nadda’s motorcade faced stone pelting last week.
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress (TMC), West Bengal’s governing party, has hit back at Ghosh saying that the responsibility to maintain law and order in Kashmir lied with the BJP-led Central Government now since it’s under their jurisdiction now.
“Kashmir is currently under the Centre’s rule. If Kashmir’s situation is bad now then the blame rests on the Central Government,” veteran TMC leader Saugata Roy was seen saying to the same Bengali channel.
“West Bengal is doing very good. The law and order situation in the state is much better than BJP-ruled Bihar and Uttar Pradesh,” claimed Roy, Dum Dum MP.
The attack on Nadda’s convoy has takee West Bengal’s already-heated political state of affairs into a boiling point with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) directly involving itself and summoning Chief Secretary and DGP of the state.
Chief Secretary Alapan Banerjee and DGP Virendra also refused to visit New Delhi, giving a clear indication of the growing animosity between the state and the Centre.
The MHA on Saturday directed, in a communication sent to Alapan Banerjee, directed IG (South Bengal Range) Rajiv Mishra, DIG (Presidency Range) Praveen Tripathi, and SP (North 24-Parganas) Bholanath Pandey, to report with the Government of India in the national capital.
The three officers were responsible for arranging security for Nadda. However, on alleged charges of failing in performing their jobs properly, they were asked to report for deputation in New Delhi.
The West Bengal governor, making the case as flashpoint for a long diplomatic battle against the Centre, refused to release the three IPS officers.