Till 4 pm, markets were closed in Dinhata and only a few vehicles were seen plying on the roads in the wake of the bandh. In a Facebook post, North Bengal Development minister Udayan Guha said, “People responded to the bandh call to great effect. In view of Ramzan and not to inconvenience people further, the bandh will be withdrawn at 4 pm.”
The BJP, on the other hand, held a demonstration outside the Superintendent of Police’s office in Cooch Behar during the day to protest against the incident. The BJP workers tried to scale the barricades put up outside the SP office. However, the police stopped them and brought the situation under control.
West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose, who has sought a report from the state police chief on the incident, visited Dinhata later during the day. Before departing for Dinhata, Governor Bose told reporters that violence cannot be allowed to take place during elections. “The political climate is not good there. I will not interfere with the activities of the Election Commission…We cannot allow violence to take place during elections. Violence was there during the last panchayat election. It should not happen again,” said Bose. “I will be in the field wherever violence takes place and take proactive steps to see that violence does not take place. I will take stock of the ground-level situation,” he added.
After reaching Dinhata, Bose spent around 45 minutes hearing the “grievances of both sides” and “reassuring them of quick action in bringing peace and normalcy in the place”, the Raj Bhawan said in a statement.
On Tuesday night, BJP supporters led by Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nisith Pramanik and TMC supporters led by North Bengal Development Minister Udayan Guha allegedly got into an altercation that soon turned into a clash. The supporters of both ministers and police who intervened were injured. The incident took place at around 9.15 pm Tuesday when Pramanik’s convoy was passing through the Choupatty area following an election meeting. TMC supporters had gathered in the area to celebrate Guha’s birthday.
While Guha alleged that Pramanik got down from his convoy and attacked TMC supporters with his security officials, the latter claimed that stones were pelted and bombs were hurled at his convoy.
Both ministers came face to face and security forces had a tough time controlling the leaders. Later, supporters of both sides were involved in a clash and around four people were hospitalised.
“It was a planned attack. They, with the help of central forces, got down from the convoy and started attacking the TMC workers and police with bamboo poles and stones. How can he go around with a convoy of so many vehicles and with beacons and hooters when the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is in place?,” Guha said. The state minister lodged a complaint against Pramanik and 44 others with Dinhata police.
Denying the allegations, Pramanik said, “They hurled bombs and pelted stones at the last vehicle of my convoy. When I got out of the vehicle to see what was happening, they attacked us. Udayan Guha is doing all this as he knows that his party will lose the election there.”
The Election Commission, meanwhile, called up the Cooch Behar District Magistrate to take stock of the situation.
The West Bengal Police Wednesday submitted a detailed report to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) over the incident.