A day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit, the Bengal Opposition on Friday stepped on the heat on Mamata Banerjee Government demanding NIA probe into the Pingla blast site, where a huge explosion in an alleged fire cracker factory killed 14 people, including 7 minors late on Wednesday evening.
CPI(M) politiburo member and State Opposition leader Suryakanto Mishra, who visited the site on Friday, demanded an investigation under judicial supervision. “This is a grave matter and the fallout could be far reaching. The Trinamool has been running bomb factories throughout the State. If we do not handle it today then things could go beyond control,” he said.
“This is a question of national security as we have been informed by the locals that the in the guise of a fire-cracker factory, alleged criminals aided by the police and Trinamool Congress, used the site to manufacture bombs that were exported far and wide against the political opponents of the ruling party,” the State BJP leadership said demanding “nothing less than an NIA probe” would satisfy them.
ADG CID Rajeev Kumar ruled out any foul play saying “no splinters have been found in the bodies of the dead persons.” However the BJP refuted CID’s contention saying “earlier the same CID had dismissed Khagragarh blast saying it was a matter among the local goons but later NIA proved them wrong.”
Curiously the locals who continued to throng the site in thousands said stockpiles of bombs had indeed gone off on the fateful night. “The main accused Ram Maity who has died in the blast was arrested and released while making bombs during the panchayat elections. They used to manufacture and export bombs during elections,” said sources in the police.
What tended to bolster the opposition suspicion was recovery of a huge amount of splinters, chemicals, ID cards and driving licenses bearing Tamil Nadu address and documents written in Arabic.
The blast had taken place at Brahmanwad village at Pingla in West Midnapore once a hotbed of Maoist movement. After the Trinamool came to power the region allegedly turned into a hotbed of Trinamool activities allegedly under police patronage.