Updated: December 10, 2020 2:55:36 pm
Kailash Vijayvargiya’s car was damaged during the stone throwing. (Photo: BJP)
The convoy of BJP National President JP Nadda was allegedly attacked with stones and bricks while en route to Diamond Harbor in Kolkata on Thursday. Several cars in the convoy, including that of the BJP National Secretary General Kailash Vijayvargiya and the head of the West Bengal BJP, Dilip Ghosh, were damaged in the attack. About 10 BJP leaders, including Vijayvargiya and Mukul Roy, received minor injuries.
“The scenes I saw while coming here are the highlights of the lawlessness that prevailed under (Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee in Bengal. We were able to get here thanks to the blessings of Maa Durga. TMC workers left no stones unturned to stop us or finish us off. This is ‘goondaraj‘. He had a bulletproof car. But almost all the other cars were damaged, ”Nadda said while talking to Karyakartas in Diamond Harbor, which belongs to TMC’s Abhishek Banerjee Lok Sabha constituency.
Bengal used to be known for its culture, but Mamata Banerjee reduced it to this level, Nadda said. “There is no administration here. The administration has collapsed. Without central forces there is no way to move in Bengal, ”added Nadda. “As I was coming, I saw ordinary people and how they are scared. Parivartan it has already taken place in Bengal. People have turned their backs on Mamata Banerjee ”.
SEE | Stones thrown into the vehicle of BJP Secretary General Kailash Vijayvargiya in West Bengal pic.twitter.com/TORSzQwjUz
– The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) December 10, 2020
Exuding confidence in winning the 2021 state assembly elections, he said: “We will end the government of Mamata Banerjee in the next assembly elections. Our workers will only have to get close to the people and they will vote for us. “
“Trinamool Congress workers carrying party flags and armed with lathis attacked our convoy in various places. TMC workers threw stones and bricks. Several cars have been damaged. The police were silent bystanders in some places and disappeared in others, ”Ghosh alleged. In defense, TMC MP Sougata Roy said: “It is not possible to cover every inch of the road with police. It is possible that in some places there have been spontaneous protests of the people. That’s what I saw. ”
The Governor of Bengal, Jagdeep Dhankhar, expressed concern about the “alarming reports of lawlessness and lawlessness” and said he regretted that such incidents took place even despite his hints to the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police.
Concerned about alarming reports of lawlessness and anarchy @MamataOfficial indicating damage to the ruling party in the rampage against the BJP convoy chairman and political police @WBPolicia support.
This happened despite my alerts to CS and DGP early in the morning indicated the collapse of law and order.
– Governor of West Bengal, Jagdeep Dhankhar (@ jdhankhar1) December 10, 2020
On Wednesday, the BJP state chairman, in a letter to Interior Minister Amit Shah, had reported on protests being planned by “TMC thugs” at different locations “on the way to Diamond Harbor from New Town.” He also alleged security breaches during Wednesday’s Nadda events in the state. In the letter, Ghosh said: “Today, during his various (Nadda’s) programs in Kolkata, it was observed that there were serious flaws in the security arrangements, allegedly due to negligence and / or casual approach of the state police department.”
Nadda is in West Bengal to take part in an ongoing mass outreach campaign launched ahead of the assembly elections that are only six months away.
Trinamool Congress workers were reportedly protesting against new farm laws near Sirakhol on Thursday. As the BJP convoy passed, stones and bricks were thrown at the cars that had braked on the narrow two-lane road. Several cars, including that of Vijayvargiya, Ghosh and security officers, were damaged and their windshields were smashed.
In the letter to Amit Shah, Ghosh had also alleged that at the BJP party office in Hastings, “there was a mob of over 200 people with sticks, bamboos, etc. who were demonstrating raising black flags ”. “Some got into the cars parked outside the office and raised slogans. The police did not intervene to arrest them and incidentally allowed them to approach a close perimeter of Naddaji’s vehicle, ”he wrote.
There has been a security bug during the party chairman JP Nadda’s visit to the state. There was no police presence at their events yesterday. I wrote to Interior Minister Amit Shah and the administration here: West Bengal BJP Chief Dilip Ghosh in Kolkata. pic.twitter.com/2b7UoAi5H8
– ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2020
It also alleged that Nadda’s convoy stopped at several traffic crossings, prompting “serious concern” about “possible safety hazards”.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
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