KOLKATA — A video that has gone viral on social media shows a Trinamool Congress leader allegedly threatening violence if names of valid voters are removed from West Bengal’s electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) being carried out by the Election Commission.
The incident reportedly took place in Supur village of Bolpur in Birbhum district on Monday. Incidentally, Trinamool Congress MLA Chandranath Sinha was present at the party meeting where the controversial statement was made.
IANS has not independently verified the video and therefore cannot vouch for its authenticity.
In the video clip, local Trinamool leader Babu Das was heard saying, “The voter list in West Bengal is being intensively revised. There is no problem with the exercise. But if even one valid voter’s name is deleted, there will be consequences. If the Chief Minister gives the order, I will cremate them in the crematorium. The Ajay River is nearby — I will make BJP’s agents float in that river.”
Following the controversial statement, there was no response from the Trinamool MLA, Chandranath Sinha, who was sitting on the dais at the meeting.
The BJP, meanwhile, slammed the Trinamool Congress for threatening the Opposition party with murder over the SIR exercise.
BJP’s Bolpur district president Shyamapada Mandal said that the BJP will not sit idle. “TMC leaders are threatening our workers with violence. Do they think that we will sit idle? The SIR process is being conducted by the Election Commission. BJP is not involved in this. The Trinamool Congress is politicising the matter,” said the BJP leader.
This is not the first time TMC leaders have issued threats to the BJP or the Election Commission over the issue. Party’s All-India general secretary Abhishek Banerjee had vowed to launch a massive protest against the Election Commission with one lakh people if names of valid voters were deleted from Bengal’s electoral rolls in the name of the SIR exercise. — IANS
