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A day after a TMC candidate for the July 8 panchayat elections was beaten to death in Malda, the son-in-law of a BJP candidate was found murdered in Dinhata district of Cooch Bihar district of West Bengal on Saturday. The BJP alleged that the deceased Sambo Das, 28, was killed by Trinamool Congress workers, a charge denied by the ruling party.
Various incidents of election-related violence have been reported in West Bengal since the panchayat election schedule was announced, with at least seven people being killed so far. Police said the sister-in-law of the victim, Vishakha Das, is a BJP candidate from booth No. 7/149 in Dasgram village in Kisamat district of Dinhata. Sambhu’s father, Naren Das, said that his son was a teacher by profession. “My son was working for the BJP. A few people came to our house on Saturday night and called him outside. They took him to a place nearby. His body was found around midnight.
According to the sources, Sambhu was found dead near a jute field in Tayada area of Dasgram village. He was taken to Dinhata District Hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead. “The body of a 28-year-old named Sambo Das has been recovered from Dasgram village. Deep wounds were found on the body. An investigation has begun,” a police officer said.
The BJP accused the TMC workers of killing Sambhu “on the orders” of North Bengal Development Minister Udayan Guha, also a Dinhata Party MLA. Dinhata Mandal Party Chairman Ajay Roy said, “The Transitional Military Council has unleashed unchecked terror in the region since the Panchayat elections. The son-in-law of our candidate was murdered on the orders of State Minister Udayan Guha.”
Federal Minister of State for Home Affairs Niseth Pramanik visited the Sambhu family on Sunday and extended his support. On Saturday, Pramanek alleged that TMC workers had “shooted arrows” and “threw bombs” at his convoy as he was heading to the office of the Block Development Officer in Sahibganj district where scrutiny of nomination papers for the Panchayat elections was under way. . He said he was visiting the BDO office after reports that TMC workers were tearing up nomination papers submitted by BJP candidates. The Transitional Military Council denied the accusation and said the union minister was “trying to stir up unrest and use the central powers to spread fear”.
Pramanik is the Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Cooch Behar.
“The state election commission and the state government are giving space to fools for such violence,” Pramanik told reporters in Dinhata on Sunday. “The way the state administration is filing false cases against BJP workers is disgraceful. We definitely want the elections to be held in a peaceful environment and with the presence of central powers.” The transitional military is afraid of holding elections in a democratic way… If my convoy can be attacked, how safe is the general public?”
Guha denied the allegations against him, and hit back at the BJP saying that the party is playing “cheap politics”. Saying that there could be other reasons behind the killing, he said, “The deceased had no political relationship. If he was killed for political reasons then what was the motive? However, he had nothing to do with politics, he was not in the BJP or the Transitional Military Council… However, the BJP will still drag the TMC on every incident because of the upcoming panchayat polls. Everything will become clear after the police investigation.” TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, “Every death, whether it is due to a personal issue or any other dispute, they are all classified as political. I will suggest that they (BJP) sit outside a cemetery and blame the TMC for every death.”
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