WB Panchayat polls: 3 BJP workers were shot at by TMC workers in Cooch Behar, claims BJP leader

Cooch Behar (West Bengal) [India], July 8 : Amid the widespread violence in West Bengal during the Panchayat poll on Saturday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ajoy Ray claimed that three BJP workers were allegedly shot at by Trinamool Congress (TMC) workers in Cooch Behar's Dinhata.
BJP's Ajoy Ray said that violence had broken out in Dinhata from the morning as BJP workers were not allowed to enter booths and were beaten up by Trinamool Congress (TMC) goons.
"From the morning our workers were not allowed to enter the booths. They were beaten in every place. One woman in the village has got a bullet injury on her stomach, one of our workers also got a bullet injury on his chest. There were instances of bombing and firing as well. Another man got hit by a bullet in his hand. The husband of one of the candidates was thrown down on the ground and kicked," the BJP leader said.
Ajoy Ray stated that violence had gripped Dinhata ever since voting was announced and alleged that the police are not acting on them.
"Ever since voting was declared, there have been instances of bombing and firing every day. The police just keep staring. I had called them on several instances but did not get any response," he said.
Speaking on the inadequate security arrangement in Dinhata, he said, "In some places only a woman constable is present. How can she manage such a critical scenario?"
Gautam Sarkar, a BJP worker who got hit in the violence said that he was hit by TMC goons as he wanted to get hold of the ballot box, which he claimed, the TMC goons were fleeing away with.
"TMC workers had jammed the booth from the morning. When our party workers got to know, they started running away with the ballot boxes. When I got hold of one of the boxes I was pushed and beaten black and blue. I was thrown down on the ground and kicked at by 10-12 people. Then they fired at one of our workers," Sarkar said.
Earlier on Saturday, a polling booth at Baravita Primary School in Sitai, Cooch Behar was allegedly vandalised and ballot papers were set on fire. A viral video accessed by ANI showed broken chairs and tables strewn inside a smoke-filled room.
Violence ensure in parts of West Bengal after voting began for the single-phase panchayat polls in West Bengal on Saturday.
There is fierce tussle for control of local administrations between the ruling TMC and the BJP which will be a litmus test for both parties ahead of next year's Lok Sabha elections.
West Bengal has 3,341 gram panchayats and the number of village panchayat election centres is 58,594. There are 63,239 seats at the Gram Panchayat level, 9730 at Panchayat Samiti and 928 at the Zila Parishad level. The counting of votes will be held on July 11.