Ahead of voting for WB Panchayat Elections, 3 BJP workers killed

In a tragic incident,a day before the Panchayat elections in West Bengal, three BJP workers were shot dead in Dinhata, while clashes broke out in various districts including Coochbehar and Murshidabad.

The BJP has accused the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) of being behind the attacks, although the TMC has denied these allegations. The incident occurred in the Kalmati area of Bamanhat 2 gram panchayat in Dinhata 2 block. The police have launched an investigation and have made an arrest in connection with the attack.

Jaideep Ghosh, a BJP member, visited the injured workers at Dinhata sub-divisional hospital and retaliated against the TMC. He stated that while the BJP workers were sitting in front of a candidate's house after campaigning, miscreants backed by the TMC arrived on motorcycles and began throwing bombs.

Three BJP workers were shot dead and another was injured in the incident. The TMC, however, denied these allegations. Clashes have also been reported in several other areas of the state. The TMC district president, Abhijit D Bhowmik, commented that such incidents were undesirable, asserting that the Panchayat election process was being conducted peacefully except for isolated disturbances in Gitaldah and Betaguri. He claimed that several BJP leaders from Bamanhat had joined the TMC.

This violence follows previous incidents, including the killing of a BJP worker named Shambhu Das in Dinhata on June 17. The BJP candidate for Tiyadhar in the Panchayat elections is Vishakha Das, the wife of Shambhu Das. Additionally, another individual lost their life in a clash between TMC and BJP supporters in the Jaridharla area of Gitaldah-2 Gram Panchayat on June 27.

The BJP and TMC have been trading accusations, with the TMC claiming that the BJP orchestrated planned attacks by bringing criminals from Bangladesh, while the BJP argued that the incidents were the result of internal factionalism within the TMC.

Two suspects in the Babu Haq murder case were arrested in Bangladesh and handed over to the Border Security Force (BSF) on Thursday. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nishith Pramanik, stated that the deceased was a Bangladeshi citizen and an international criminal.