Supporters of the BJP and the Trinamul Congress took to the streets at different places in north Bengal on Tuesday to protest against some of the candidates announced by the respective parties in the Assembly elections.
The BJP activists raised a road blockade to protest the nomination of former Forward Bloc leader Dipak Kumar Roy in the Sitai Assembly seat in Cooch Behar district. The Gosani Road (which connects the historical site of Gosanimari with the district headquarters) was blocked from around 12pm till 2pm.
“The person who has been fielded by our party had defected from the All India Forward Bloc. He doesn’t enjoy acceptance in the BJP. We want Bhaben Roy to be fielded at Sitai. He had contested from the same seat as the BJP candidate in the 2016 Assembly polls. If the BJP doesn’t give Bhaben Roy a ticket, we will field him as an Independent,” said Biswajit Burman, a local BJP leader.
The road blockade was lifted after BJP leaders had spoken to the protesters.
BJP supported had held protests at Gosanimari in the Sitai constituency on Monday also.
Trinamul supporters burst sound crackers to mark the launch of the campaign by Raiganj party nominee Kanaialal Agarwal.
So far, the BJP has announced candidates in seven of the nine Assembly seats in the Cooch Behar district. “A number of names have emerged as probable candidates for the remaining two seats. There is a chance of similar protests once the party announces the names,” said a BJP insider.
Trinamul supporters also raised objections to the party’s candidate in Sitai. When sitting MLA Jagadish Roy Basunia went to some villages to seek votes, there were heated exchanges of words between his supporters and Trinamul members who were opposed to his re-nomination.
As many as nine office-bearers of the Trinamul Congress in the Itahar block of the North Dinajpur district resigned on Tuesday to protest against the party’s decision to drop sitting Itahar MLA Amal Acharya. Mosharaf Hossain was declared as the Trinamul candidate at Itahar.
“Some Trinamul leaders hatched a plot against Amal Acharya and are trying to create a rift in the party. As these leaders did not listen to our demands and suggestions, we have stepped down from our posts,” said one of the Trinamul functionaries.
BJP workers gathered in front of the house of Alipurduar district BJP president Ganga Prasad Sharma on Tuesday and demanded that Kalchini candidate Bishal Lama be replaced.
“Lama had left the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and joined the BJP recently. He was fielded by ignoring senior BJP leaders who had been working at Kalchini for years,” said a protester.
Trinamul supporters burst crackers when Raiganj candidate Kanaialal Agarwal started his campaign on Tuesday. The BJP has filed a complaint with the Election Commission, pointing out that there is a ban on sound crackers.
Even some Trinamul leaders slammed the party workers for bursting the crackers. There had been protests against Agarwal’s candidature.
Jalpaiguri district Trinamul leadership removed the Rajganj and Nagrakata block presidents of the party on Tuesday. Hundreds of Trinamul activists had hit the streets demanding their removal.
“We have also formed Assembly level committees which comprise all senior leaders of the areas concerned. All of us will work together for Trinamul candidates,” said K.K. Kalyani, the Jalpaiguri district Trinamul president.
