English
Kolkata: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) faced a violent assault in Bhupatinagar, East Midnapore, where a member of the team was injured, and the agency’s vehicle was damaged. The NIA team was returning after detaining two Trinamool Congress leaders, Balai Charan Maity and Monobrata Jana, accused of involvement in a blast that claimed three lives in December 2022. An aggressive crowd obstructed the NIA team and its security from reaching Bhupatinagar Police Station. Despite lodging a complaint with the local police, the situation escalated as the residents attempted to block the NIA team during extensive searches at multiple locations. “An aggressive crowd tried to stop the NIA team and its security component from moving towards Bhupatinagar Police Station. A complaint has also been lodged at the local police station,” the NIA said in a statement.
The investigation revealed that Maity and Jana conspired to manufacture and detonate crude bombs to incite terror. Both individuals actively participated in the bomb-making conspiracy, leading to their arrest. The NIA member sustained minor injuries, and the agency’s vehicle was damaged during the altercation with the crowd. “The duo, Balai Charan Maity and Monobrata Jana, were arrested after extensive searches at five locations, including the house of Jana, where a crowd of local residents tried to block the NIA team,” NIA said.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has requested a detailed report from the district magistrate of East Midnapore regarding the attack on the NIA team. This incident marks the second assault on a central investigating agency in West Bengal within a short span. On January 5, ED and CAPF personnel were attacked by the locals in Sandeshkhali in which suspended Trinamool leader.
The BJP claimed a “state-sponsored attack” on the NIA officials in West Bengal and accused Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of inciting the violence to create hurdles in the 2022 blast case probe to protect those involved in the incident.
Reacting sharply to the incident, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, “The attack on the NIA officials is Sandeshkhalli 2.0 orchestrated by the state to put hurdles to the investigation into the bomb blast case”.
“It was not just a coincidence but a well thought out experiment. It was a state-sponsored attack on the NIA officials. The attack was organised by the ruling TMC,” he charged.
The BJP leader alleged that the attack on the NIA officials in Bhupatinagar area on Saturday was “direct evidence of the TMC’s Talibani mindset culture”.
“Political violence, violence against central probe agencies, corruption, protection to terror and radical elements have been clearly institutionalized under this Talibani mindset culture of Mamata Banerjee government,” Poonawalla alleged.
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