Banerjee, who had met the Governor on Monday evening soon after the TMC leaders were detained and allegedly manhandled by the police, Banerjee accused the BJP and the Central government of “hatching a conspiracy” against Opposition leaders.
“We wish to bring to your attention a grave state of affairs, wherein, the very idea of a free and fair democracy has been severely compromised by the ruling dispensation at the Centre. The BJP has mobilised various Central departments/agencies like the NIA, ED, CBI and IT to launch an onslaught against all opposition political parties, including TMC,” Banerjee’s letter to the Governor read.
In his letter, the TMC leader pointed out five subjects and issues that have been raised before the EC by his party. These include – a complaint against the BJP for “blatantly conspiring” with Central agencies; a complaint against BJP leader Jitendra Tiwari and NIA’s Dhan Ram Singh for allegedly engaging in backroom talks and “targeting” the Trinamool Congress members; alleged inaction of the Election Commission to reconcile issues, and “despite multiple complaints lodged by the TMC requesting intervention to preserve the sanctity of the ensuing Lok Sabha elections”, and allow the party to immediately disburse funds to help rehabilitate people affected by a thunderstorm in Jalpaiguri.
Urging the Governor to issue directives to the poll panel to address the issues pointed by him in the letter, Banerjee wrote, “These Central departments/agencies are illegally executing the diktats of BJP to trample the members of TMC in a bid to keep them away from performing their political functions during the ensuing general elections. At the same time, the EC, which is supposed to protect and uphold the democratic rights of the people, is acting like a silent referee which is only looking the other way.”
The TMC MP from Diamond Harbour also pointed out the detention of the senior TMC leaders in New Delhi on Monday, while holding a dharna outside the EC office.
Banerjee, who met Governor Bose at the Raj Bhavan on Monday night, had slammed the Election Commission after his party leaders were detained for protesting outside its office in Delhi. He termed the Delhi Police action a “black spot on democracy, and murder of democracy”. Meanwhile, TMC leaders have been protesting inside the Mandir Marg Police Station in Delhi since Monday night against their detention, even though the police claimed they were already released.
On Monday, A TMC delegation comprising Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien, Mohammed Nadimul Haque, Dola Sen, Saket Gokhale, Sagarika Ghose, MLA Vivek Gupta, former MPs Arpita Ghosh, Santanu Sen and Abir Ranjan Biswas and TMC West Bengal students’ wing vice-president Sudip Raha had met Election Commission officials. The leaders were later detained by Delhi Police and forcefully evicted from outside the EC office as they sat on a dharna.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Devesh Mahl said, “We released them last night, but they wished to stay out of their own will and have been protesting in the police station’s garden. We will not act against them unless they cause grievance to the general public.”
In a post on X on Tuesday, Gokhale said the party leaders were continuing their protest at the police station. “We 10 MPs & former MPs from the TMC started a 24hr peaceful dharna outside the Election Commission last evening… We were manhandled by Delhi Police, detained, taken around Delhi, and finally dumped at Mandir Marg Police Station. As we said – our protest is for 24 hrs. We’re all at Mandir Marg Police Station, where we were detained, silently carrying on our protest,” he said.
AAP leaders, including Saurabh Bharadwaj, met the protesting TMC leaders who camped overnight at the police station. In another post, Gokhale thanked AAP leaders for their support.