Political violence in Bengal continues unabated as two councillors are shot dead in separate incidents

Published : Mar 14, 2022 20:12 IST

At the rally taken out by the Congress in protest against Tapan Kandu's murder

At the rally taken out by the Congress in protest against Tapan Kandu's murder

The murder of two recently-elected councillors on the same day once again exposed the extent of political violence prevalent in West Bengal. On February 13, Tapan Kandu, a Congress councillor from Jhalda municipality in Purulia district, and Anupam Dutta, a Trinamool councillor from Panihati municipality in North 24 Paraganas, were shot dead within hours of each other.

A video footage showed Anupam Dutta being shot in the head at pointblank range as he was sitting pillion on a motorbike. The assassin, who was seen trying to escape on foot, was subsequently apprehended by the local residents. A few hours earlier, Congress’s Tapan Kandu, who was elected for the fourth consecutive time this year from ward number 2 of the Jhalda municipality, was shot dead by assailants riding a motorbike.

The West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee brought out two separate rallies—one in Kolkata and one in Jhalda—in protest against Kandu’s murder. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, State Congress president and leader of the Congress party in the Lok Sabha who had led the march in Jhalda, said: “At a time when votes are being looted, both Kandu and his wife were elected; so you realise how popular they were with the local people. The Congress seemed poised to form the board in Jhalda, when Didi [Mamata Banerjee] made fresh calculations and realised that by subtracting him, Congress will not be able to form the board. The local police and Trinamool carried out the elimination.” Chowdhury also accused the police of indulging in “politics of murder”. “We saw in the case of Anis Khan, and now Tapan Kandu, how the police are getting involved in the politics of murder. This is very dangerous for Bengal,” he said. Tapan Kandu’s wife also alleged that it was a political murder. “The local police and the Trinamool were trying to force him to join Trinamool, both before and after the elections. But he had refused. We now want safety for our family.”

Countering the allegations, Firhad Hakim, senior Cabinet Minister and Mayor of Kolkata, said: “Family members in a state of grief say a lot of things, and many times they are also made to say a lot of things. But that is not how law and order and administration function. Administration and law function on proof.”

Slain Trinamool councillor Anupam Dutta’s brother demanded that the person who ordered the assassination be brought to justice. According to Dutta’s wife, he had many enemies and anyone could have had him killed. “He always used to stand by the common people and that was not to the liking of those who wanted to create a political space for themselves. I have one request to the Chief Minister—that she stand by us, and ensure that we get justice.”

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has insinuated that Dutta’s murder was a result of inner-party feud within the Trinamool Congress. State BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said: “In its attempt to create an opposition-free political environment, Trinamool is today fighting against itself.”

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