Tension erupts as Trinamool reclaims party offices

BJP workers shout slogans, police resort to baton charge.

A day after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee directed her party workers to reclaim party offices occupied by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), there was tension in various parts of the State on Saturday as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) leadership sought to reclaim party offices.

Minister Jyotipriyo Mullick faced protests by BJP supporters at Kancharpara in the State’s North 24 Parganas. The police resorted to a baton charge to control the situation as BJP supporters surrounded the vehicle of TMC leaders, shouting slogans of ‘Jai Shri Ram!’ Mr. Mullick got out of his vehicle and, with folded hands, urged the people to not to support the BJP .

Senior BJP leader Mukul Roy’s son and Bijpur MLA Subhrangshu Roy, who recently joined the BJP, said that the party office belongs to the locals in Kancharapara and they will decide which party’s office it will be. In other parts of the State, like Hooghly and Birbhum, tension prevailed over the TMC reclaiming party offices that were occupied by the BJP after May 23.

Postcards to Mamata

The BJP leadership in the State, however, alleged that the police were trying to beat up people chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram!’ State BJP president Dilip Ghosh alleged that the police were arresting those chanting these slogans. Meanwhile, BJP MP from Barrackpore Arjun Singh said that the party would send 10 lakh ‘Jai Shri Ram!’ postcards to Ms. Banerjee’s residence. These developments come against the backdrop of the CM lost her cool on Thursday and threatened locals chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram!’ in front of her vehicle.