A BJP delegation led by Suvendu Adhikari was stopped from visiting the spot in West Bengal's Birbhum district, where eight people were charred to death, prompting the state's principal opposition party to demand Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's resignation over the incident, alleging that attempts were being made to shield the culprits.
The BJP delegation led by Adhikari, the leader of the opposition in the state Assembly, was stopped as police had put up barricades just outside Bogtui village, PTI said in a report.
"We were stopped from visiting the spot, but the chief minister had said she would be going there. She will be visiting the area to remove pieces of evidence and protect the culprits. We are against it. If we are not allowed, then no one else should also be permitted to visit it," he said.
"Only CBI and NIA probe can bring out the truth," he said.
West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar fired fresh attacks at Banerjee over the Birbhum killings as he shot off yet another letter to her, claiming that the state government's actions in the matter smack of "political overtones" and an attempt to shield the guilty.
He said that it is high time Banerjee revisits confrontational unconstitutional stance so that democratic values and human rights get restored and people get a reprieve from repressive 'fear' and suffering.
In a three-page reply letter to Banerjee, the Governor said that there was a "political conspiracy" behind the violence. He also said that the number of casualties may be higher.
Eight people were charred to death as their houses were set on fire in Bogtui village near Rampurhat town of Birbhum district early on Tuesday. The incident is suspected to be the fallout of ruling TMC panchayat officials murder.
Dhankhar had on Tuesday described the death of eight people at Rampurhat as "horrific" and claimed that the state was in the grip of a culture of "violence and lawlessness", drawing a sharp reaction from Banerjee, who said that his comments were "uncalled for".
Dhankhar's comments came in reply to Banerjee's letter in which she urged Governor "to refrain from making unwarranted statements and allow the administration to conduct an impartial probe into the Birbhum violence.
"Your utterances and statements have political overtones which provide support to other political parties to browbeat the government," the chief minister said in a letter to Dhankhar. Banerjee, also the Trinamool Congress supremo, said that the state is saddened at the loss of lives.
"It pains me that you (Dhankhar) have chosen an unfortunate incident in Rampurhat to pass sweeping, uncalled for comments on law and order situation in the state," her letter read.
She later on Wednesday announced that she would be visiting the violence-hit district on Thursday to take stock of the situation. She added that "action will be taken against perpetrators of violence “irrespective of their political colours”.
Dhankhar, in his three-page reply to Banerjee on Wednesday, said the chief minister has adopted an "accusatory stance" at his "restrained reaction" to the incident.
"As usual, you have taken an accusatory stance at my restrained reaction to grisly carnage worst in the memory at Rampurhat...The shocking carnage is being justifiably compared by many to the incidents in the state, a few years ago, while you were in the opposition.
"Adopting diversionary tactics, you have labelled my reaction as a sweeping and uncalled for statement. In the face of such enormity, I cannot fiddle in Raj Bhavan and be a mute spectator," he wrote.
Calling for introspection, the governor also said "nothing can be more farcical" than the claim that the state had always been peaceful, barring a few incidents. "Introspection would reveal that actions at your (Banerjee's) end and not mind are dictated by political overtones.
"Special Investigation Team (SIT) is being taken as a cover-up operation to provide an escape route to rogue elements. Politically caged investigation in the state inspires no confidence," he added.
WB Guv
Response to Hon’ble CM Mamata Banerjee on worst in recent memory grisly carnage at Rampurhat, where six women and two children were burnt alive.
This savagery is being justifiably compared by many to incidents in the state few years ago, while HCM was in opposition. pic.twitter.com/Z7vXiVdLFP
— Governor West Bengal Jagdeep Dhankhar (@jdhankhar1) March 23, 2022
The governor claimed that the incident is indicative of deterioration of law and order in the state. "The administration is required to rise above partisan interests which in spite of cautions is not being reflected in reality," Dhankhar said in a video message attached with the Twitter post.
Asking the police to deal with the matter professionally, the governor said that he has asked the state chief secretary to send him an update on the incident urgently.
The Left Front (LF) also took out a rally in Rampurhat demanding justice for those killed in violence in the area the day before. LF chairman Biman Bose, who led the rally along with CPI(M) state secretary Mohd Salim, said any attempt to hush up the "mass murder" would be resisted. "We want strictest punishment for those involved in the barbaric attack," he said.
The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday took suo moto cognisance of the violence and a bench comprising Chief Justice Prakash Srivastava and Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj will hear the matter today.
At least 20 people have been arrested so far in connection with the violence in West Bengal's Birbhum district that claimed eight lives, a senior police officer said. "With nine more arrests, the number of those who have been nabbed in the case rose to 20. We are grilling them to find out if there were more people involved in the incident. Some accused seem to have fled the village. We are trying to trace them," the officer said.
The West Bengal government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by Additional Director General (CID) Gyanwant Singh, to probe the incident.
With inputs from agencies
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March 23, 2022 at 06:22PM
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