Kolkata:
A video recorded from inside Trinamool Congress MP Mitali Bag’s SUV captures the moment a crowd closed in West Bengal’s Hooghly district today, the final day of campaigning for the assembly election.
The footage shot from the rear seat shows the vehicle moving along a road when a large group of men suddenly surrounds it. Within moments, they begin striking the car. The video shows a man in a white shirt lunging at the vehicle from the front, his arms outstretched.
The crowd grows quickly with dozens of people visible on both sides of the road. The driver uses his hands to shield his face just as the windshield takes hits. Cracks are visible.
A visibly distressed Bag, the MP from Arambagh, alleged on Facebook Live lathi-wielding workers positioned outside the election office of BJP candidate Prasanta Digar blocked her convoy and threw stones at her vehicle, shattering its window panes. She said she was seated in the front seat and that she was left covered in broken glass.
“The BJP talks high about the safety of women, but see how they treat a woman MP,” Bag said. She also took a swipe at chief election commissioner Manoj Agarwal, who recently alleged that Trinamool workers were intimidating voters in the area.
Bag was subsequently taken to a local health centre, where medical staff wheeled her in.
The BJP has denied involvement, with party spokesperson Debjit Sarkar calling the incident a staged performance. Sarkar said Trinamool had in fact charged BJP workers at their office and injured several of them.
Former BJP Arambagh unit president Biman Ghosh alleged that Goghat Trinamool leader Sanjay Khan led an armed attack on BJP campaigners with sticks, bricks, rods and firearms, leaving nearly 50 injured and 20 hospitalised.
Khan has denied it, alleging instead that BJP workers entered a minority-dominated locality and began hurling bombs at residents.
The Chief Electoral Officer’s office said it had sought a CCTV report of the incident and was also reviewing Bag’s Facebook Live. Central forces were camping at the spot, an official confirmed.
Trinamool general secretary Kunal Ghosh said the party would not let the matter rest.