BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya today contested “false claims” made by the West Bengal police and said “Mamata Banerjee’s police had been lying” all the way. Also the observer for West Bengal in organizing the party for the 2021 Assembly elections, Mr Vijayvargiya was referring to claims made by the police and state government that the police did not use guns to dispel the crowd during the BJP’s ‘Uttarkanya march’ in Siliguri on Monday. One protester, Ulen Roy, was killed during the melee, while hospital documents and the postmortem report showed that the man had died of “multiple pellet” injuries on his chest and abdomen. However, police have denied using shotguns.

Posting a video clip that showed the police using shotguns on his Twitter handle, Mr Vijayvargiya claimed: “West Bengal Police opened fire and even hurled bombs. Police killed our party worker in the Siliguri rally. Despite that, Bengal police denied their responsibility. Mamata Banerjee’s police are lying. We would move even the Supreme Court if the police framed false charges against our party workers and leaders.”

“I have given only one video clip as sample. I have at least 10 video clips to expose Bengal police and how they can lie,” Mr Vijayvargiya added.

The video clip shows a policeman loading ‘bullets’ in a gun and his colleagues, saying ‘Maar Shala… Directly,’ (hit them directly), while also using slang. However, Trinamul Congress leader and MP Sougata Roy told the media: “The pictures are morphed. Picture only is not substantial.”

Mr Vijayvargiya also criticised the TMC for the alleged murder of a BJP worker, Swapan Das, at Tufanganj in Cooch Behar. Das was allegedly killed and hanged later.

On the other hand, Darjeeling MP Raju Bista, after meeting injured party workers in the Siliguri hospital, said: “Hundreds of BJP leaders and workers have been injured due to police brutality in Siliguri… The disproportionate use of force by West Bengal Police under instructions from Trinamul Congress is a shocking testament to the lack of democracy in the state.