Kolkata: Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday demanded either the imposition of President's rule or the implementation of Article 355 during elections following the alleged incidents of violence during the rural polls in West Bengal.
After a meeting with the state election commissioner Rajiva Sinha, Adhikari revealed that he had received calls from Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda, both assuring him of their serious consideration regarding the restoration of democracy in West Bengal.
Adhikari stated, "We have urged the state election commissioner to review the CCTV footage and videography of the polling booths. In cases where such evidence is unavailable, a fresh round of voting should be conducted, and if necessary, the counting should be deferred."
Expressing the need for a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe, Adhikari highlighted, "We want to understand how such a large number of bombs and firearms were procured during the elections. Just like the incident in Mominpur, we demand an NIA investigation into this matter."
Criticising the state election commissioner, Adhikari remarked, "We are aware that people from all political parties have lost their lives, and regardless of what the election commissioner says, no one will believe him. He is simply working under Mamata Banerjee's influence."
Coincidentally, according to BJP sources, two BJP workers, Madhav Biswas and Chiranjeet Karmi from Cooch Behar, died on Saturday.
"We must stage a protest in Kalighat, the residence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. We should put an end to the violence no matter what it takes. I left the TMC for a cause, and that cause is to protect West Bengal. I am willing to do anything to restore democracy in the state," added Suvendu Adhikari.
State BJP president Sukanta Majumdar also wrote a letter to the Union Home Minister, urging central intervention.
Union Minister Anurag Thakur criticized Mamata Banerjee, stating, "How low can she stoop to establish her party's dominance in the panchayat? She cannot oversee an election without killings and chaos."
In a statement, Thakur further mentioned that Bengal's bomb culture is a shame for India.
TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh accused Adhikari of going "mad."
Ghosh added, "Article 356 should be first implemented in Manipur."
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