Trinamool team visits Nandigram to counter BJP’s fact-finding team

The development comes at a time when a BJP fact-finding team led by former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad is visiting West Bengal.

Alleging that its party workers were attacked and intimidated, the Trinamool Congress leadership on Friday sent a team to Nandigram and blamed Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Suvendu Adhikari for the violence related to the recent panchayat elections.

The development comes at a time when a BJP fact-finding team led by former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad is visiting West Bengal and meeting party workers affected by the violence.

Trinamool spokesperson Kunal Ghosh and Minister Sashi Panja visited Nandigram and met party supporters who alleged attacks by BJP cadre.

Nandigram is the constituency of Mr. Adhikari and he had defeated Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee from the Assembly seat during the 2021 Assembly election after switching to the BJP. The saffron party has performed relatively better in Nandigram in the panchayat elections compared to the rest of the State. The Trinamool leaders asked the police to take action against those responsible for the attacks.

During the day, Trinamool general secretary Abhishek Banerjee visited the State-run SSKM Hospital where injured Trinamool supporters from Nandigram are availing treatment. While blaming Mr. Adhikari and the local BJP leadership for the violence, Mr. Banerjee said it was “unfortunate” that Calcutta High Court had provided protection to Mr. Adhikari.

“Justice Rajasekhar Mantha has given such a judgment that even if Suvendu Adhikari does anything wrong in the future no action can be taken against him. Justice Rajasekhar Mantha has also given protection to accused who are behind the violence. Because of one judge of the High Court the entire judiciary is being maligned. The hands of the administration are being tied,” Mr. Banerjee said while speaking to mediapersons at SSKM hospital. The Trinamool leader said that he was willing to go to prison if a contempt petition was initiated against him. This is not the first time that the leadership of the State’s ruling party had targeted members of judiciary, particularly Justice Mantha. Posters against the judge had come up on premises of the High Court and a contempt petition has been initiated in the matter.