On the last day of campaigning for the bypolls in Bengal – scheduled on September 30 – there was tension in south Kolkata’s Bhawanipore during a rally of former state BJP chief Dilip Ghosh. The Election Commission of India has sought a report on the incident. Chief minister of Bengal and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee is contesting the bypoll from Bhawanipore, and the BJP has fielded Priyanka Tibrewal against her.
Ghosh was campaigning in the area – in Jadu Babur Bazar – when some people, allegedly Trinamool Congress workers and supporters – shouted “Go Back” slogans at him. This soon led to a scuffle and Ghosh’s security personnel were seen on videos taking out guns and aiming them at those who were organising the protest.
Dilip Ghosh lost his cool and abused at the protestors. The scuffling also caused injury to a BJP worker. Ghosh said that they would lodge a formal complaint. BJP’s state president Sukanta Majumdar said that he was not sure how the byelections could be held “under such circumstances”.
