Mamata Banerjee, the current Chief Minister of West Bengal, blamed Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday for the violence in Sitalkuchi, in West Bengal’s Cooch Behar district, where four people were killed in clashes.
“Home Minister Amit Shah is completely responsible for today’s incident and he himself is the conspirator. I don’t blame central forces because they work under the Home Minister’s order. We will demand his resignation,” she stated, calling the deaths “murder by central forces”.
Ms Banerjee, who questioned the central forces’ claim of self-defense, said her government would launch an investigation into the incident by forming a capable team of police officers. “There is no video footage or any other proof to substantiate claims of the central forces,” Mamata said.
More Statements By Mamata:
“Where does this theory come from? Who was injured on their part? Is there any footage? After killing those people, they were supporting the act,” Mamata Banerjee told the media at a news conference in Siliguri in West Bengal.
On Sunday, the Chief Minister will pay a visit to the district, and the Trinamool Congress has planned black-badge protests across the state to commemorate the incident.
The four men were killed in a shootout with security forces outside a polling station this morning. The clashes have sparked a blame game between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress as 44 seats vote in the fourth phase of state elections today.
Violence was registered at a polling station in Sitalkuchi, about 680 kilometres from the state capital Kolkata, and the Election Commission requested a comprehensive report.
At a rally in Bengal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences for the deaths. But he also slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her party soon after the case. “What happened in Cooch Behar is sad… I offer condolences to bereaved families. Mamata Didi and her goons are jittery because of the groundswell of support for the BJP.”
Mamata Banerjee replied back harshly to the central government and the BJP, saying, “The BJP knows it won’t win so it’s resorting to bombs and violence.”
