TIMES OF INDIA : Trinamool men assault Bengal leader of oppn

TNN | Nov 21, 2015, 02.09 AM IST

MIDNAPORE/KOLKATA: On a day when chief minister Mamata Banerjee shared dais with CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury at Nitish Kumar's swearing-in programme at Patna, CPM's Bengal secretary and Opposition leader Surjyakanta Mishra came under attack from Trinamool men at his home turf Narayangarh in West Midnapore. Mishra was leading a CPM rally as part of the statewide mass contact programme across the 70,000 booths ahead of the assembly polls.

Worse, Mishra faced the Trinamool's ire at Narma that comes under his assembly constituency Narayangarh that has been sending him to Assembly since 1991. The attack has been condemned by political parties including Congress. Left Front chairman Biman Bose and Congress state president Adhir Chowdhury came down heavily on the Trinamool's authoritarian attitude. While condemning the attack, veteran Congress MLA Manas Bhuiyan wanted Midnapore SP to book the culprits.

Trouble broke out at 11 am while the Opposition leader was leading a Left rally for a three and a half kilometer stretch from Narma to Madanmohan Chawk at Narayangarh. About 40 Trinamool supporters led by local party president Saktipada De came in the way shouting "go back" slogans to Mishra. Minutes after they blocked the Left rally and told them to go back. Mishra, initially at the rear end of the rally came forward and tried to surge ahead. The Trinamool men assaulted the other men in the rally. Amid the scuffle, Trinamool men gave Mishra a push. Mishra lost his balance and was rescued by his security.

Mishra came back to the spot within minutes when angry CPM men were about to go on a counter attack. The Opposition leader pushed his party men away. "It was a planned attack on our party men. Trinamool supporters came in our way when the programme was announced much earlier. We also took permission from the police to hold the rally. Unfortunately, the lathi wielding policemen on duty stood as mute spectators when Trinamool led the unprovoked attack," said CPM's Midnapore secretary Tarun Roy.

Trinamool supporters wearing black badges wouldn't allow the local MLA beyond the Bakitaki area. "Mishra is our local MLA. But he doesn't attend to the local problems. He is not even aware that students are having their annual examination at the Madanmohanchawk high school. They are using microphones. Locals thus blocked the rally. There was none from our party," said Narayangarh Trinamool block president Mihir Chandra. When asked about local party president Saktipada De's taking the lead in the confrontation, the Trinamool leader said: "There was tension in the area. We had sent De to avert major happenings."

Later, the Opposition leader held a meeting at Madanmohanchawk. "This is nothing new. This is the situation across Pingla, Sabang, Kharagpur(rural) and Narayangarh assembly constituencies in West Midnapore. Trinamool won't allow us to hold meeting or run political activities. They couldn't prevent us. Instead, those who attacked us had to take to their heels. People are witness to such attacks. I appeal to everyone to come forward against Trinamool," Mishra said.