'This is mob rule': BJP on 'assault' attempt on NCW member in Bengal's Hooghly

Kolkata, Jan 13 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has criticised the West Bengal government and the Trinamool Congress over the purported attack on a member of the National Commission for Women (NCW) probing the sexual assault case of a minor girl at Uttarpara in Hooghly district.

In a social media post on Tuesday, BJP's Information Technology Cell chief, Amit Malviya referred to an incident where some people reportedly associated with the ruling Trinamool Congress made an alleged attempt to physically heckle NCW member, Dr Archana Majumdar, who was leading investigations in the cases of rape and rape-murder in the state, including the recent case of a minor girl's sexual assault in Uttarpara.

Claiming that the reign of lawlessness in West Bengal has crossed all limits, Malviya observed in this social media post that such incidents of threatening investigating personnel in such cases were not random. He also shared a video of the incident on his X handle.

“This was intimidation. This was a warning meant to silence those who dare investigate crimes that the Mamata Banerjee regime wants to bury. That a constitutional authority discharging her duty is targeted in this manner shows how desperate and frightened the TMC has become,” Malviya said in his social post.

“For how much longer will Bengal be forced to tolerate this vile and despicable party? For how much longer will criminals enjoy protection while investigators are threatened? This is not governance. This is mob rule,” he added.

In another social media post, Malviya referred to the arrest of Trinamool Congress associate Bullet Khan in connection with the recent suicide of a BLO in Bengal’s Murshidabad district.

Khan had refused to repay a loan of Rs 20 lakh to the deceased BLO concerned, Hamidul Islam, which pushed the latter into a state of acute mental frustration.

Initially, Trinamool's Murshidabad leadership projected the death due to SIR-related pressure. The party even staged protests outside the office of West Bengal's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Kolkata. However, investigations led the sleuths to the Trinamool worker, who was arrested on Monday.

Referring to the incident, Malviya, in his social media post, said that the arrest of Khan has once again proved how West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party, Trinamool Congress, have been caught spreading falsehoods.

"This is how Mamata Banerjee and the TMC distort the truth and subvert facts to suit their political agenda,” Trinamool Congress observed.