TMC alleges 'systematic misuse of police' by BJP in Bengal; writes to President Murmu

NEW DELHI: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Thursday wrote to President Droupadi Murmu and West Bengal governor RN Ravi, seeking time for party delegations to meet them and highlight the alleged lawlessness in the state.The TMC accused the ruling BJP of “systematically misusing” the West Bengal Police, calling it “disturbing.”"TMC workers are being targeted by the police across the state. Party offices are being vandalised. The police are following no rules. Police are acting openly as BJP cadres. There is utter lawlessness here. In this situation, we have written to the President of India, and the Trinamool Congress has written to the Governor of West Bengal, seeking an urgent appointment of a Trinamool Congress delegation to discuss the disturbing situation in Bengal," the party's Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien told reporters.The development came hours after TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee alleged that "BJP hooligans armed with weapons" stormed the party's Camac Street office in Kolkata in the early hours of the day and vandalised the premises, assaulted staff, and damaged electronic equipment."What happened at Camac Street this morning is a disgraceful assault on the rule of law. At around 4.30 am, BJP hooligans, armed with weapons, stormed our party office in the heart of Kolkata. They attacked our people, snatched their phones, smashed furniture, ransacked the premises and destroyed electronic equipment. And where was Kolkata Police? For nearly TWO HOURS, despite repeated calls and emails from our people and lawyers, there was no response. This is outrageous and unacceptable. We demand the immediate arrest of every person involved in this attack," he wrote on X.The Diamond Harbour MP, nephew of TMC supremo and former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, asked chief minister Suvendu Adhikari if he was “scared” of the TMC and was therefore resorting to "intimidation."“This is what the BJP has done to my party office in the early hours of this morning. Will the Governor of WB act? Will the Union Home Minister act? Will the PMO act? Or will they continue to look the other way? It is high time the judiciary, particularly the Calcutta High Court, takes serious note of what is happening and acts to uphold the rule of law in West Bengal. And one simple question for Suvendu Adhikari: why are you so scared of the Trinamool Congress and of me that you have to resort to this kind of intimidation? If this is how the Opposition is to be treated in West Bengal, through violence, vandalism and intimidation, then the Chief Minister has no moral authority to remain in office. He must resign. This is not democracy. This is political thuggery... Nothing will be forgotten,” Abhishek Banerjee added.The BJP, meanwhile, rejected Abhishek Banerjee’s allegation of “vendetta”, arguing that if that were the case, no TMC leader would have remained “unscathed” after the party’s defeat in the April assembly elections, which ended its 15-year rule in West Bengal."If the BJP were engaging in vendetta politics, then after the election results were declared, none of the defeated Trinamool Congress MLAs, ministers, and MPs would have remained unscathed... Trinamool members are throwing eggs at each other and vandalising each other's offices. Those who faced injustice at the hands of Abhishek Banerjee, when he was a top party leader, understand the situation," BJP state president Samik Bhattacharya said.Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.