Mamata 'killing' democracy in West Bengal: BJP

The BJP on Thursday alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was "killing" democracy in the state by unleashing "violence" on its workers in the panchayat polls, as a delegation of party leaders met the President, the Vice President and the Home Minister to raise their concerns over such issues.

The BJP also presented relatives of its workers, who were killed in the alleged violence, and those injured, before the media, as its leaders accused the workers of the ruling Trinamool Congress and the police of colluding to stop opposition candidates from filing their nominations for the panchayat polls in West Bengal.

Union minister Babul Supriyo and other party leaders from the state, including Mukul Roy, Rupa Ganguly and Rahul Sinha, hit out at the Mamata Banerjee government.

The BJP delegation of state leaders met President Ram Nath Kovind in the evening with some of the vicims of the alleged violence and submitted a memorandum. The leaders had earlier met Vice President M Venkaiah Niadu and Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

They also met National Commission for Minorities Chairperson Syed Ghayorul Hasan Rizvi as one of the BJP workers, who were killed allegedly by political rivals, was from a minority community.

At the press conference, Supriyo said that the state government was inching towards becoming a fit case for dismissal. He, however, insisted that his party would rather work to defeat the TMC in the polls.

Sinha said they do not want to make Banerjee a "martyr" and would defeat her in elections. Roy alleged that Banerjee was a "killer of democracy" and claimed that five BJP workers had been killed in attacks allegedly by TMC workers and hundreds injured. They also showed video clips of the alleged violence.

In their memorandum to Naidu, the party said democracy in the state was reeling under the danger of complete breakdown of law and order in the state.

"Mamata Banerjee-led TMC members are preventing through force BJP workers from contesting the Panchayat polls. BJP members who filed their nominations have been intimidated, attacked with weapons, bombed, bludgeoned, knifed and even killed," the memorandum said.

Democratic space in the state is shrinking and the Mamata government is trampling on democracy, it alleged. The BJP said it also appeals to the President to take cognizance of it, the memorandum said.