India’s BJP Accuses West Bengal's Ruling Trinamool Congress of Murdering Party Worker

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and ruling Trinamool Congress have been at loggerheads in West Bengal since the latter won the 2021 state assembly. Both political parties have accused each other of attacking party members.

The mysterious death of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker in the Indian state of West Bengal on Friday has triggered a massive political uproar. The death comes hours before the visit of Federal Home Minister and senior BJP politician Amit Shah.

Arjun Chowrasia, a member of BJP’s youth wing, was found hanging in an abandoned building near his home in north Kolkata. Chowrasia was due to lead a motorbike rally on Friday in one of the events organised to welcome the federal minister.

The BJP has accused the ruling Trinamool Congress of the murder, but the latter denied the allegations.

Soon after the news broke concerning the death of the BJP worker, the BJP launched a scathing attack against the ruling party.

Sharing a video, the local BJP leadership stated in a tweet that “Chowrasia was brutally slaughtered and hanged.”

Arjun Chowrasia, 27, BJYM Mondal Vice-President, North Kolkata was brutally slaughtered & hanged.

This continuous slaying of opponent political workers highlights the demise of democracy in WB. 57 BJP workers were massacred in the last year. Humanity is smothered by the TMC! pic.twitter.com/iDGJyfOxu7

— BJP Bengal (@BJP4Bengal) May 6, 2022

Revealing some photos of Chowrasia, BJP’s National Vice President Dilip Ghosh also chimed in, claiming that it was a “political murder”. He also alleged that the youth leader had been murdered by “political terrorists of Trinamool Congress”.

BJP's National Vice President Accuses Trinamool Congress of Murdering Partyman

© Photo : Twitter/@DilipGhoshOff

Reacting to the allegations, Trinamool Congress parliamentarian Santanu Sen said, "The allegations against us are baseless. Let the police investigate the matter.”

Sen even went on to question the BJP’s intentions: “Any death is very unfortunate. The police are there. This is not Uttar Pradesh, this is Bengal. Whenever there is any incident, it is probed fairly, irrespective of the political connections."

"There have been such incidents in [the] past where people have tried to make it look like murder. However, I wouldn’t like to comment on it right now till the investigation is done,” he added.

Media reports indicate that state police have opened an investigation into the matter.

Federal Home Minister Shah, who is on a two-day visit to West Bengal, has reportedly asked the party to cancel all welcome events and is likely to visit the victim’s family.

It is the first time Shah is visiting West Bengal's capital Kolkata since the BJP lost the state assembly in 2021.