A man was allegedly knocked down and killed by a car from the convoy of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari in Chandipur, Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal. However, the police are yet to confirm whether the vehicle was a part of Adhikari's convoy or not.
The incident took place on Thursday night and triggered a road blockade by the locals for over an hour. The convoy did not stop even after the accident, as per the allegations made by the locals. Adhikari and other BJP leaders have not commented on the issue.
The incident details
As per the locals, the deceased, Seikh Israfil, was crossing the national highway near a petrol pump when he was hit by a car at 10:30 PM. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where he was declared brought dead. The incident has caused outrage among the locals, who claim that the car belonged to Adhikari's convoy.
Police investigation
The police have registered a case of rash driving and causing death due to negligence against the unknown driver. A senior district police official stated that they are yet to confirm if the car was part of Adhikari's convoy, as claimed by the locals. The police are currently investigating the matter and have assured that appropriate action will be taken against the guilty, regardless of their political affiliations.
Road blockade by the locals
The incident has sparked anger among the locals, who staged a road blockade for over an hour in protest. They demanded that the culprits be brought to justice and alleged that the convoy did not stop even after the accident. The police had to intervene to clear the roadblock.
AITC to protest
All India Trinamool Congress announced they will be protesting against Suvendu Adhikari in a tweet. They wrote, "Our leaders will be protesting in Purba Medinipur's Chandipur and Kanthi on May 5, 2023, at 10 a.m., demanding the arrest of Suvendu Adhikari in connection with the death of a person hit by his convoy. Leaders who will be in the protest are: Dola Sen, Soham Chakraborty, Birbaha Hansda, Sayantika Banerjee, Debangshu Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Ghosh, Jaya Dutta, Sudip Raha along with local (Purba Medinipur) leaders."
BJP leaders remain silent
Adhikari, who is the Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, was returning from a party programme at Moina at the time of the incident. However, he and other BJP leaders have not commented on the issue so far.
