Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 17 : The ruling Trinamool Congress on Saturday hit out Union Minister of State Nisith Pramanik, who, the BJP claimed, had been attacked earlier in the day.
The TMC accused the MoS of threatening a police officer seen purportedly in a video released by the party on its official Twitter handle.
In the video shared by the TMC, Pramanik, clad in saffron attire accompanied by party workers, is purportedly seen engaged in a heated exchange with the police while pointing a finger at an officer.
The incident followed a clash that broke out between TMC and BJP workers at the Sahebganj Block Development Office during the scrutiny of nomination papers for the July 8 panchayat elections.
TMC lashed out at the minister, terming his behaviour "unacceptable".
"It's disgraceful to witness Shri @NisithPramanik stooping so low and disrespecting the dedicated police force who put their lives at stake to protect us. Threatening a police officer on duty with words like "I will make you lick my shoes" is utterly despicable," read a tweet on the TMC's official handle.
"This kind of behavior from a Union Minister of State is not just unacceptable, but a clear reflection of the deteriorating moral standards within @BJP4India, our police force deserves respect and gratitude, not such vile disrespect," the tweet stated further.
Earlier in the day, the BJP's West Bengal chief Sukanta Majumdar alleged that a bomb was hurled at the Union minister's car.
"A bomb was hurled at the car of Nisith Pramanik. The police here are literally helpless. (TMC MLA) Udayan Guha is standing there with his goons, numbering 1,000-1,500. They are snatching Form B (nomination paper) from the hands of our workers and the Election Commission and the state administration are sitting silent," he said.
"If a minister can be attacked like that, one can only imagine the plight of the common man in West Bengal. Is Mamta Banerjee running the state or only resorting to a drama," Majumdar added.
West Bengal has seen a significant uptick in incidents of violence ahead of the panchayat polls. with clashes reported around the filing of nominations, including an outbreak of violence at the Block Development Office in Birbhum's Ahmadpur, where crude bombs were allegedly hurled.
However, according to officials, no casualties were reported in the incident.
Visuals surface of crude bombs being hurled in the area. Police detained a few people in connection with the clash.
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