The Bengal BJP on Sunday threatened retaliation after another saffron worker was found hanging from a tree this time at Goghat in Hooghly district some 50 km from Kolkata. The incident occurred close on the heels of yet another BJP worker found hanging in a similar fashion at Khanakul in the same district a few days ago.
Ganesh Roy a middle-aged BJP “Mandal” president was found hanging from a tree near Goghat railway station, some 2 km away from his home, family members said accusing “there is a Trinamool hand in the murder.”
The incident sparked instant tension in the area with hundreds of saffron workers staging a road blockade at Arambagh highway and the police had to clear the blockade after great strain.
Local party men said Roy was “under TMC’s radar as he had been an active worker and great mobiliser of supporters which was he was “being threatened by the TMC ever since they lost Hooghly to BJP in the last year’s parliamentary elections.”
Reacting to the incident State BJP president Dilip Ghosh said “the TMC wants to cling on to the power by hook or by crook… they know that they are on their way out and so they have become desperate, killing our good organisers. But this will not the BJP workers. They will come back with bigger force.”
Alleging that terror was the state policy of the TMC Government he said “CPI(M) used to bury the opponents and the TMC is doing the opposite by hanging them from trees. But these cruel acts of theirs will not go unpunished. The TMC will be wiped out in the next year’s Assembly elections.”
Another senior State leader Sayantan Basu warned the TMC of retaliation saying “we are taking note of all the incidents and these will be paid back in equal measures and in the same coin. When we will come to power there will be no TMC party office left in the State.”
State Minister Firhad Hakim however denied Trinamool hands in the incident saying “the BJP workers are committing suicide because they are depressed by the fact that as members of that party they have to commit many undesirable works including spreading hatred among the people. So I tell all and sundry that doing BJP is risky.”
Killing opponents was not the policy of the Trinamool as the party had suffered the same at the hands of the CPI(M) earlier and knows what it was like being killed by the ruling party goons, he said.
A number of BJP men had hung to death in Purulia district last year. Even a few months ago a BJP MLA from Hemtabad in North Dinajpur died by hanging near his village.
Meanwhile, Two months after BJP MLA from Hemtabad Debendranath Ray was found hanging in North Dinajpur district of West Bengal, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has filed its charge sheet concluding it to be an abetment to suicide and cheating case.
Sources said quoting the, Charge Sheet that cases had been filed under sections 306/ 420/ 120(B)/ 34 of the Indian Penal Coce. “Charge sheet has been submitted against accused - Niloy Sinha of English Bazar, Malda district and Mabud Ali of Chanchal, Malda district for abetment to suicide, conspiracy and cheating,” sources said.
The BJP had staged massive protests against the TMC for allegedly murdering the MLA and demanded a CBI investigation.