West Bengal minister Birbaha Hansda’s vehicle was attacked in Paschim Medinipur district on Friday. The officers provided this information. He said members of the Kurmi community allegedly pelted stones at the convoy of senior Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Abhishek Banerjee, which also included the minister’s car.
The incident took place in Salboni where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to attend a party function on Saturday (May 27). Abhishek Banerjee, who has ‘Z plus’ security, led a road show at Binpur and Gopiballavpur in Jhargram as part of his Trinamool Nabo Jwar (New Wave in Trinamool) campaign, a party leader said.
He said that when he was passing through Salboni after the rally, members of the Kurmi community, protesting their demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status, gathered on both sides of the road. As their car proceeded, they allegedly started pelting stones at the roadshow, he said. The windshield of Hansda’s vehicle, which was part of the convoy, was broken in the attack.
sent police force
Officials said that a large number of police forces have been sent to the spot to control the situation. It was not immediately known whether anyone has been arrested in this connection.
Condemning the incident, Hansda said that violence can never be a form of democratic protest. It can never be a fight for the rights of any community, he said. Those who threw stones are all outsiders, and are claiming to be members of a particular community to justify the violence.
Members of the Kurmi community had met Abhishek Banerjee in Bankura on Tuesday and urged him to look into their demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status. The TMC MP from Diamond Harbor gave them a patient hearing and said it was right to hold a democratic protest for their demands.
BJP leader Dilip Ghosh’s house was vandalized
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national vice-president Dilip Ghosh’s house in Kharagpur in West Medinipur was vandalized last week allegedly by members of a Kurmi organization over his comments against the community. The Kurmi community is currently classified as an OBC. The community protested for several days in April demanding ST status in various districts of the state, including Dakshin Dinajpur, Purulia, Jhargram and Paschim Medinipur.
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Sujan Chakraborty said the TMC leadership should introspect as to why such protests are taking place in the state. He alleged that there is anger among the people on many issues. It is unfortunate that such protests are taking place despite heavy security arrangements, he said.
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