Accusing the ruling Trinamool Congress and state administration of unleashing a reign of terror, CPI(M) leader Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Sunday claimed that a free and fair panchayat poll would see a political victory for the Left in rural West Bengal.
“The TMC and the state administration have launched a reign of terror before the panchayat polls so that opposition parties can’t file nomination. The police is doing nothing to ensure a free poll,” Mr. Bhattacharjee told a rally at Bongaon in North 24-Parganas district.
The former chief minister accused the government of deliberately entering into a spat with the State Election Commission over the holding of panchayat poll.
“We had organised seven panchayat polls, but never such a situation had arisen. This government from the very beginning wants to dismantle the panchayat system,” he claimed.
Hailing the increase in the vote share of the Left Front in the just-concluded Howrah Lok Sabha by-election, he said that despite violence by TMC activists the people of Howrah had shown the guts to fight the terror.
“They had tried to create a lot of problems, but we had given them a good fight. If we had been able to stop TMC’s terror fully we would have done much better. If free and fair Panchayat polls are held then no one can stop the victory of the Left Front,” he said.
Left Front chairman Biman Bose on Sunday accused goons allegedly associated with the Trinamool Congress for the killing of a CPI(M) leader in Burdwan district.
