In an incident reminiscent of Sandeshkhali, a mob of 50-60 women armed with sticks and stones attacked a team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district’s Bhupatinagar when they went there to investigate a 2022 bomb blast case. On December 3, 2022, a devastating explosion claimed three lives in a kutcha house of a Trinamool Congress leader’s in Bhupatinagar, killing three people. The NIA began probing the matter in June 2023. However, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday accused NIA officials of attacking villagers at Bhupatinagar and said “the actual fact was not the other way round”.
She claimed that officials of the Central probe agency had barged into several houses in the early hours of Saturday over a “minor incident of bursting of crackers in 2022” and defended the villagers’ response as “self-defence”.
“The attack was not perpetrated by the women of Bhupatinagar, but rather by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) team,” she said at an election rally in South Dinajpur district’s Balurghat. “Will the women sit back if they (NIA) go to their houses at night or will they try to defend themselves?” she asked.
An NIA officer was injured and a vehicle belonging to the probe agency was damaged in the attack, a spokesperson of the Central investigating agency said. Later, the NIA team lodged a complaint at Bhupatinagar police station, the official said.
A statement by the NIA said that it had arrested two key conspirators, amid stiff resistance from an unruly crowd. “The duo, Balai Charan Maity and Manobrata Jana, were arrested after extensive searches at five locations, including the house of Jana, where a crowd of local residents tried to obstruct the NIA team. One NIA team member suffered minor injury and the agency, official vehicle was also damaged as some miscreants in the crowd assaulted them. The aggressive crowd tried to stop the NIA team and its security component from moving towards Bhupatinagar police station to complete the arrest formalities.
“Manobrata Jana, and the other arrested accused, identified as Balai Charan Maity, were found to have conspired to manufacture and explode crude bombs to spread terror.
“Three persons were killed in the December 2022 explosion in the house of one Rajkumar Manna in village Naruabilla, District East Medinipur, West Bengal. Manna himself was seriously injured in the blast, along with two others, Biswajit Gayen and Buddhadeb Manna.
All three succumbed to their injuries later.
“During investigation, the NIA uncovered the role of several other accused in the case, including the arrested accused, Manobrata Jana of village Naruabila, and Balai Charan Maity of Ninaruya Analberia. The two men had actively participated in the conspiracy to make crude bombs and had extended support for the same, NIA had found in its probe, which led to today, searches and arrests.
“The arrested accused will be produced before the Special NIA Court, Kolkata, as per law.
Investigations in the case are continuing,” the agency said.
Alleging a political motive in the NIA action and an attempt to intimidate Trinamool Congress workers, since both of those arrested were active local leaders of her party, Mamata Banerjee questioned why the agency was arresting people days before the polls in a case dating back to December 2022.
The Trinamool Congress chief accused the BJP Government at the Centre of trying to use the Central agencies to win the elections.
“We want the Election Commission to work impartially, not turn into a BJP-run commission,” she said. Questioning the transfer of the state’s police officers by the EC, she asked why ED, CBI and IT officers have not been changed. “NIA, CBI are brothers of BJP; the ED (Enforcement Directorate) and Income Tax are funding boxes of BJP,” Banerjee alleged.
Banerjee said that while the state police looks after law and order throughout the year, Central forces like the BSF, CRPF and CISF are brought in during the elections, she added.
“If you (BJP) have the power, win the election by fighting in a democratic manner. Don’t arrest my booth level workers and election agents. There must be a level-playing field in the elections,” she said at the rally.
After the attack on the NIA team, Trinamool Congress members of Bhupatinagar blocked roads and burnt tyres.
Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose described the attack on NIA officers as a “very serious issue” and said the matter should be treated with the “all seriousness that it deserves”. He also said such an “attempt to bully the investigating agencies does not bring credit to anyone down the line” and the matter has to be dealt with an iron hand.
Condemning the attack on the NIA team, BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said that the “lawlessness in Bengal is turning the State into Afghanistan.”