“The law and order situation in the area is not conducive to holding by-poll. If an MP can be attacked, then imagine the situation common voters are facing. I demand postponement of polling till the situation normalises in Bhawanipore…till the time its conducive for holding a free and fair election,”
BJP national vice president Dilip Ghosh
BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh was Monday pushed and heckled by alleged TMC supporters, prompting his security officer to whip out a pistol in Bhawanipore, where Chief minister Mamata Banerjee is in the fray.
Ghosh demanded deferment of the 30 September bypoll till the situation has normalised. National TV channels showed Ghosh being pushed and heckled on a road as a posse of security guards tried to shield him. A suspected TMC supporter was seen grabbing security personnel by the collar who swiftly pulled out a pistol to scare away the crowd.
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“The law and order situation in the area is not conducive to holding by-poll. If an MP can be attacked, then imagine the situation common voters are facing. I demand postponement of polling till the situation normalises in Bhawanipore…till the time its conducive for holding a free and fair election,” he said.
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Ghosh claimed there was a threat to his life and defended the action of his security officers. “Had they not done this, I would have been killed. My security personnel ensured I could board the car and leave the place safely,” he said. Reacting to Ghosh’s demand for postponement of the by-poll, senior TMC leader Tapas Roy said the BJP leader is desperate to score some political brownie points after being “shunted out” as the state party president.
“His party should first remove him from the list of star campaigners and then talk about the postponement of by-poll. It seems that he is desperate to score some brownie points following his unceremonious removal as state president,” Roy said.
The Congress, which has decided against contesting and campaigning in the bypoll, hit out against the TMC over the incident. “Is this a sign of healthy democracy that leaders of opposition parties are attacked in such a manner? This is shameful. The EC must ensure free and fair polls,” state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the leader of the party in the Lok Sabha, said.
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