In the midst of a tense 12-hour Bengal Bandh called by the BJP, a party leader claimed his vehicle was attacked in Bhatpara, North 24 Parganas. The bandh was a protest against police actions during the BJP’s ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally.
Priyangu Pandey, a BJP leader, reported that his car was ambushed just minutes after leaving his house. “Around 50-60 people blocked the road with a jetting machine, then hurled bombs at my vehicle, followed by 6-7 rounds of gunfire,” Pandey told PTI. He narrowly escaped, but his driver was injured in the shooting.
BJP leader Arjun Singh accused the Trinamool Congress (TMC) of orchestrating the attack, alleging that the miscreants were brought in from Kakinara under the direction of TMC leaders Tarun Sau and MLA Somnath Shyam. Singh claimed the attack was a deliberate attempt on Pandey’s life, conducted in the presence of a senior police officer.
This violent incident occurred as protests escalated across the state, with clashes erupting in Kolkata. Police responded with tear gas, water cannons, and lathi charges to disperse the crowds marching toward the West Bengal State Secretariat, Nabanna. The BJP has been vocal in its criticism of the Trinamool government following the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata, which sparked the ongoing unrest.
To maintain order, police deployed extensive security measures, including instructing bus drivers to wear helmets.
