Malda (West Bengal): In a photograph going viral on social media for the past few days, the son of a Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader from Malda can be seen holding a pistol in one hand and a mobile phone in another as he poses for a picture. The photograph has led to heavy criticism against Mohammad Badrujoha alias Idul -- the Trinamool Regional Vice President of Kahala Village Panchayat in Maldar Ratua -- whose son Muhammad Farhad is the face of the picture.
Denying the authenticity of the picture, the father of Farhad, said, "These are conspiracies. Some people have deliberately put weapons in my son's hands to ruin my political career and have made them viral. My boy is young, he did not understand these conspiracies. I don't know which party these miscreants belong to. But this is a conspiracy."
Trinamool President Entazul Alam has accepted that the photo is of the son of their party's Regional Vice President. "We have also seen the picture in the group. That boy is the son of our Kahala Region Trinamool Vice President. But I have nothing to say about this. The police administration will take appropriate action," he said.
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The police officials meanwhile claim to have taken cognizance of the matter, though the man in the picture has not been detained yet as the police are on the lookout. In a similar incident earlier, visuals of several leaders and workers of the district Trinamool went viral on social media with guns in their hands. This lot also included the picture of a woman leader and Panchayat Samiti president holding a pistol.
Taking this as an opportunity to criticize the party, Amlan Bhaduri, the general secretary of BJP's South Malda organizational district said, "Trinamool has now lost ground. They have no public support. Panchayat polls are ahead. They want to create an environment of fear among people. That's why they are uploading pictures on social media with firearms or even bombs. Their aim is to secure votes by instilling fear among the voters. But people will not let this happen. People are now united against Trinamool."
Meanwhile, Trinamool State General Secretary Krishnandunarayan Chowdhury said that the party does not condone such activities. "The party will not stand by anyone who commits a crime. The police have started an investigation into the incident. Appropriate action will be taken based on the findings. I have information that after the incident, the police searched his house. But he ran away. Whatever the opposition is saying is baseless. They should look at the efforts the police and state administration are putting into this."
