Bengal polls: TMC, BJP workers clash at Jagatdal; crude bombs hurled, shots fired

CRude bombs were hurled, and shots were fired after a collide bust come out on dominicus nighttime between the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and arch rival Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers at Jagatdal in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to hold a public meeting on Monday.Officials said a paramilitary trooper sustained splinter injuries in his leg, and four people have so far been arrested in connection with the violence.BJP leader Arjun Singh said the TMC wanted to disrupt Modi’s public meeting by creating tension in the area and attacked their workers on Sunday night. “They wanted to kill my son, Pawan Kumar Singh. They started with stone pelting, and when we rushed to the spot, around four to five people arrived in a vehicle and started firing and hurling crude bombs near my son’s residence. His security guard was injured,” said Arun Singh, who has been fielded from Noapara and his son from Bhatpara, both in Barrackpore.TMC candidate Somenath Shyam Ichini accused Arjun Singh of lying. “CCTV footage clearly reveals his role and how BJP workers under his leadership attacked TMC workers on Sunday. The BJP hurled bombs and fired shots. The trooper was injured by the bombs hurled by Singh’s men.”In Bhangar, TMC candidate Saokat Mollah was allegedly attacked on Sunday night while returning from a public meeting. Molla blamed the Indian Secular Front (ISF) for the attack. TMC workers and supporters staged a demonstration outside the Bijoyganj Bazar police station. There was no response from the ISF.Poll officials said that police on Sunday recovered around 100 crude bombs from a house in Bhangar. On Monday, around eight crude bombs were found at Habra in North 24 Parganas. The National Investigation Agency on Monday said that it has started a probe into the recovery of bombs in Bhangar.A poll official said a stern message has been given to the police. “...that if any explosive is found or any threatening tactics are used...the officers-in-charge of the local police station will have to face consequences and they shall not be spared. Therefore, all threatening material should be seized within the next 24 hours,” said the poll official.In 2021, there were allegations of post-poll violence after the results were declared on May 2, and the TMC returned to power for the third time in a row, winning 213 of the 294 assembly seats. The Calcutta high court ordered a federal probe into the allegations.The Election Commission of India (ECI) issued a warning against false voting ahead of polling across 142 assembly seats in the second and last phase of the assembly elections on Wednesday. It added that AI-based webcasting would identify anyone who tries to vote twice and face imprisonment for a term of up to one year.Ahead of the second phase, the ECI intensified security arrangements to ensure free, fair, and violence-free elections. A second poll official said webcasting was only installed inside the polling stations in the first phase. In the second phase, cameras will be installed in the lanes and by lanes leading to polling stations particularly in the crowded areas in Kolkata and Howrah. “Drones would be deployed to keep a watch from the sky on the polling day,” the second official said.