Swarna Das, 65, who lost her 20-year-old elder son Shibu in post-poll violence, on Tuesday alleged that he was killed by some BJP workers in connivance with CPM supporters.
“My son had been supporting the BJP since before it formed the government in Tripura in 2018. He went to a friend’s house on the night of May 24 night but didn’t come back. I got a call around 1am that my son had been attacked and was shifted to hospital. Around six hours later, he died on my lap,” an inconsolable Swarna said.
Swarna’s husband, Shankar Das, an alcoholic, died one-and-a-half years ago. Since then, Shibu, a daily labourer, has been the sole breadwinner for the family, which resides at Rajarbandh village, near Bodhjungnagar Industrial Growth Centre, on the outskirts here. Most of those at Rajarbandh, where 200 families live, reside in mud-walled huts and survive on daily jobs.
Shibu was killed in post-election violence at Banikya Chowmuhani in West district, around 25km from here, on May 24.
Swarna demanded justice for her son and severe punishment for the killers.
Bodhjungnagar police station officer-in-charge Subrata Barman told The Telegraph that the murder was committed by some locals since Shibu and his friends were creating disturbance in the village.
“We have registered an FIR after the compliant filed by Shibu’s family. Whoever has killed him should not have taken the law into their hands. Law will take its own course. Investigation suggests the victim was a nuisance in his locality. Some locals were planning to take revenge. They got the chance on May 24,” Barman said.
Swarna Das shows a picture of her elder son Shibu (Tanmoy Chakraborty)
Eight persons were booked for the crime, intentionally causing grievous injury and for illegal trespass, among other charges.
At least three persons have died in post-election violence in Tripura so far.
A duty officer at Tripura police headquarters said over 100 cases had been registered on violence across the state since May 23.
The CPM has claimed its supporters have been under attack from the BJP after the Lok Sabha poll results were declared. “At least 209 attacks against CPM leaders, supporters as well as arson and ransacking occurred across the state since May 23. Nobody has been arrested in any of the cases,” state Left Font convener Bijan Dhar told reporters.
The Congress also said over 550 people have been rendered homeless in post-poll violence in Tripura in the past five days. It said it would soon file a petition in the Supreme Court demanding compensation for people injured in the violence.
BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharya claimed its supporters were under attack by the Opposition CPM, the Congress and a section of “new entrants” in the BJP.
“A BJP karyakarta was murdered at Banikya Chowmuhani. We got reports that the CPM and a section of newcomers in BJP were involved in the incident. We have not given these new entrants any party membership. They are posing as BJP workers and going around. Two of our supporters have been murdered. Over 25 karyakartas were injured in violence,” Bhattacharya said.
He claimed that CPM cadres posed as BJP workers while committing the crime to taint the ruling party’s image.
Chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb, who is in Delhi with Pratima Bhowmik and Rebati Tripura, the newly elected MPs from the state, has instructed the police to take severe action against anyone who takes the law into their own hands.
