KOLKATA: The Friday attack on the ED officers united the CPM and Congress against its INDIA alliance partner Trinamool Congress in denouncing the state of law and order under the Mamata Banerjee government. Citing Mamata’s sit-in-demonstration four years ago — protesting against the CBI raid at the residence of former Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar, presently the Bengal DGP — the CPM described the Bengal CM as the pioneer of what happened in Basirhat in North 24 Parganas.
“The ED officers were attacked and left bleeding when they went to search the house of TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee had set a precedence four years ago in 2019. She staged a sit-in-demonstration in Esplanade after the CBI raided Rajeev Kumar’s residence. After four years, the TMC supporters followed her footprint in Basirhat. She is the pioneer of the shameful incident in Basirhat,” said CPM’s central committee member Sujan Chakrabarty.
Echoing the same, state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said the attack was instigated by police, the department overseen by Mamata. “After this attack by the miscreants from the ruling establishment against central agency officials, it is clearer than ever that there is no law and order in the state. This time, they escaped with injuries. Tomorrow they could be murdered. Even that not ought to be a surprise any longer. It is a fit case for President’s rule,” said Congress’s leader in LS.
CPM state secretary attacked both the TMC and the BJP on the issue of the state’s law and order situation. “The TMC has allowed these miscreants to thrive and prosper for the sake of increasing its clout. Bengal witnessed hooliganism under LoP Suvendu Adhikari’s patronage during her tenure.”