West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi on Saturday urged for peace in the state after clashes broke out in some places following the results of the Lok Sabha elections, the Hindustan Times reported. A man was shot dead in Nadia district during a clash allegedly related to the election results, while at least 30 people were injured in different districts.
“He [Tripathi] has appealed to the people to maintain peace in accordance with the rich culture of Bengal and work for the prosperity and progress of the state and the nation,” a statement issued by the Raj Bhavan said.
In Nadia, both the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Trinamool Congress claimed that the deceased, 24-year-old Santu Ghosh, was a party worker killed by the rival party, NDTV reported. His family, however, said that he was not involved in any kind of politics.
The saffron party blocked trains and traffic in the area for several hours and demanded action against the accused.
Attacks on Trinamool Congress party offices in Cooch Behar and Hooghly were also reported. The walls of many Trinamool Congress offices were painted saffron in North 24 Parganas district, and about 200 Trinamool Congress workers joined the BJP in West Midnapore district.
Clashes took place between supporters of the two parties in Birbhum, Bankura, West Midnapore, North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas districts.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee claimed at a press conference on Saturday that there had been attempts to “forcefully take control of party offices” in Bhatpara city in North 24 Parganas district, The Times of India reported. She said the offices would be returned to their rightful claimants by Monday.
Other Trinamool Congress leaders also alleged that BJP workers attacked and took control of hundreds of their offices in North 24 Parganas, Hooghly, Bankura, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar.
Several incidents of violence were reported in the state during the Lok Sabha elections. The BJP’s tally increased to 18 and the Trinamool Congress won 22 seats in the state. The state sends 42 members to Parliament.
BJP wins four Assembly bye-polls
The BJP’s Pawan Kumar Singh won the Bhatpara Assembly bye-poll held on May 19, defeating Trinamool Congress legislator Madan Mitra, the Election Commission said. The BJP also won the Darjeeling and Habibpur seats, while the Trinamool Congress took Islampur and the Congress the Kandi seat.
The bye-poll for the Krishnaganj Assembly seat held on April 29 saw BJP candidate Ashis Kumar Biswas defeat the Trinamool Congress’ Pramatha Ranjan Bose. The bye-election had been necessitated following the murder of Trinamool Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas in February. The BJP now has six seats in the West Bengal Assembly.
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