Day before panchayat polls, violence rocks Nandigram

KOLKATA, MAY 10 : A day before West Bengal goes for the first phase of panchayat polls, violence rocked Nandigram and some other parts of the state on Saturday. Clashes between Congress and CPI(M) supporters were also reported from Sabang in West Midnapore.

CPI(M) cadres allegedly fired at Bhoomi Uchched Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) supporters while a group of people were returning home at Jalpai village in Nandigram Block I. The incident left eight injured, two with bullet wounds.

In another incident, police lathicharged homeless BUPC activists near the BDO office in Nandigram after they tried to snatch ballot boxes protesting against their ouster from villages by CPI(M) cadres.

In Purulia, there was tension because of Maoist terror. Most people stayed indoors in several villages in Bagmundi, Balarampur and Asra .

The CRPF personnel in Nandigram alleged the police were not letting them search houses for firearms.

Regarding Nandigram, CPI(M) top brass in the district advised mediapersons to keep off polling booths.

“Don’t go near polling booths. There might be problems,” they said.

The district police, however, maintained that the overall situation was peaceful. “In the morning, a group of villagers tried to snatch ballot boxes and we had to lathicharge to disperse the mob. We are trying to send as many people as we can back to their villages,” said SS Panda, SP of East Midnapur.

At 10 am on Saturday when ballot boxes and other material were being despatched to polling booths from the BDO office, around 200 homeless villagers stopped the vehicles and tried to snatch away ballot papers and boxes. A huge contingent of policemen lathicharged the mob.

BUPC leaders alleged around 2,000 voting identity cards were snatched by the CPI(M) cadres in various villages, including Satengabari, Gokulnagar, Jalpai, Saudkhali and Sonachura. “This is a farce. The administration is escorting villagers back to their homes. Then they are getting beaten up and their cards snatched. We have lodged a number of complaints. I do not think our supporters will be allowed to vote,” said Sheikh Sufiyan, TMC leader. Five districts — Bankura, Burdwan, Purulia, East and West Midnapore districts — will vote on Sunday.

At Rainagar, CRP jawans were thwarted by local police against house searches for firearms. Search operations were stalled for two hours, but later resumed.

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