At least eleven people suffered bullet injuries, three of them critically, when Trinamool Congress goons attacked BJP men with guns and bombs on Sunday even as the Trinamool Congress and BJP engaged in fierce turf war in North 24 Parganas district off northern fringes of Kolkata on Sunday.
Though the police allegedly stood and watched, the incident turned ugly before discovering a ‘property dispute’ behind the violence, the BJP blamed the local Trinamool leadership for the flare-up.
BJP leaders claimed all the injured persons belonged to their party.
According to sources, the incident started on Saturday after local Trinamool workers passed lewd comments on a woman BJP supporter near Rajbari area of Malancha at Sandeshkhali block and later beat up other saffron workers when they raised an objection.
“Our men were protesting against the incident on Sunday when the Trinamool goons led by a local leader Shahjahan attacked them with guns and bombs,” State BJP president Dilip Ghosh said.
All hell broke loose after the TMC backed criminals fired 25 rounds and charged several bombs on the BJP men who had blocked road in protest against the Saturday’s incident.
“At least eleven of our men suffered serious injuries,” he said adding that three of the injured were rushed to Kolkata’s Chittaranjan Medical College with bullet injuries on their chests while eight others were being treated at Basirhat General Hospital.
However, State Minister and North 24 Parganas district TMC president JP Mullick blamed the BJP for the Sunday’s violence saying “The BJP attacked our men including a local leader Rejauddin Mollah. Many of our workers were injured when the BJP men charged bombs on them. They have been hospitaliSed.”
Mullick said the local political situation had hot up after a recent public meeting by the State BJP president at Minak-
han area.
He alleged, “Dilip Ghosh has instigated the BJP workers asking them to attack the Trinamool men. But this will not give them a dividend.”
That the violence had political roots was proved when Mullick said “We will wipe them out in the coming panchayat elections. Not a single BJP member will be allowed to win from here.”
Meanwhile, there was no sign of any let up in violence in luvpur block of Birbhum distinct with the two groups fighting with each other with bombs and guns throughout the day on Sunday, sources said.
The area had seen nine deaths last week when the victims were allegedly blown up while making bombs. No
casualty however was reported on Sunday till reports last came in. Birbhum has been yet another district where the TMC and the BJP were engaged in a turf war for the past couple of years with hundreds of bombs getting recovered from the district and dozens of people getting killed in fights.