CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechury and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee separately condemned the dismantling of a statue allegedly by BJP activists at Belonia, Tripura, three days after the BJP captured power overthrowing the 25-year-long Left regime.

While Mr Yechury described the incident as a “Fascist” act, Miss Banerjee said it wasn’t the duty of a government to dismantle statues.

Addressing a public meeting in Bankura Miss Banerjee said: “Though I never supported the CPI-M, yet on this issue I’m with them and condemn such loathsome acts by BJP cadres in Tripura.”

“In Bengal”, she said, “we never allowed such type of mindless, intolerant activities. We coined the slogan ~ Badla noi, Badol chai (We don’t want retaliation, but regime change). We won’t accept if anyone destroys the statues of Lenin, Marx, Gandhiji, Netaji or Swamiji.”

The CPI-M also condemned Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy’s remark who tweeted after the demolition of Lenin’s statue: “What one democratically elected government can do another democratically elected government can undo. And vice versa.”

The CPI-M said a governor’s task is to see whether under these circumstances law and order is being maintained properly, but “the Tripura governor is feeling glad, which is an ominous sign for democracy.

However, later in the day the Tripura governor clarified that his tweet was made “in an abstract sense” and he did hold the same view, but it had nothing to do with any specific case such as the pulling down of Lenin’s statue in Tripura.

He even went to the length of saying that he later made another tweet in which he stated pulling down of Lenin’s statue was an offence for which there are penal provisions. He said he had directed the district administration to probe the matter and ensure that no trouble broke out.

Addressing a Press conference at CPI-M state headquarters, Mr Yechury urged democratic and secular forces of the country to come together against the “fascist onslaught” of the saffron regime.

“Such attacks clearly demonstrate the RSS and the BJP rely mainly on unleashing political violence as a means to advance their inherent anti-democratic and fascist agenda,” he said.

Mr Yechury alleged 514 CPI-M activists were assaulted, 1,539 houses of party activists attacked and 196 houses set on fire since the announcement of the poll results in Tripura.

He also claimed that 134 CPI-M offices were attacked and looted, 64 party offices set ablaze and at least 90 offices of different mass organisations were occupied allegedly by the supporters of the BJP and its ally, the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT).