Agartala: Trinamool Congress National General Secretary and the party’s Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha MP Abhishek Banerjee, on Monday, faced rough protests as he reached Agartala, the capital city of neighbouring Tripura. “Go back” slogans and blows of sticks on his vehicle were rained by BJP supporters while he was on his way to Tripureswari Temple to pay obeisance. The move prompted Mamata Banerjee’s nephew to question the existence of democracy in Tripura.
The number of protests, as well as blows of sticks on his car, also prompted many to link Monday’s incident with the one that happened with the vehicle of BJP national president JP Nadda earlier this year. Nadda was in West Bengal and was touring the Diamond Harbour area when agitating Trinamool Congress supporters rained bricks on his and party leader Kailash Vijayvargiya’s vehicles near Shirakole. Political observers are saying that the BJP is paying back Abhishek with the same coin.
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Tripura goes to the polls in 2023 and it is now being billed as a litmus test for the Trinamool Congress ahead of the 2024 general elections, which party supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has already said will be a decisive mandate against the BJP. It was more than obvious that the saffron party, which rules Tripura, will not let Abhishek Banerjee’s visit to the state pass off without a protest.
Trouble started brewing late last night and continued till this morning when agitating BJP supporters allegedly pulled down and tore apart banners and festoons put up by Trinamool Congress workers ahead of Abhishek’s visit. On several occasions, there were heated exchanges with the team of Trinamool Yuva activists led by Debhanshu Bhattacharya, the person credited with coining the much-touted Trinamool Congress slogan of Khela Hobe (the game is on), over banners and flags being taken down and torn.
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As Abhishek Banerjee’s convoy left Agartala airport, the presence of agitating BJP workers was visible along the road. “Go Back” slogans were frequently raised. Amid the protests, blows of sticks rained down on the vehicle in which, the heir apparent of Trinamool Congress was travelling. The windscreen of the vehicle suffered minor damage, but no one was hurt inside. Abhishek filmed it from inside and later posted it on his Twitter handle with a message, “Democracy in Tripura under @BJP4India rule! Well done @BjpBiplab for taking the state to new heights.”
His convoy again faced a blockade within the limits of the Kamalsagar Assembly segment, before reaching Tripureswari temple. A group of school students had blocked the road on the issue of their headmaster being transferred. Abhishek got down from his vehicle and was seen talking to the students. Soon he convinced them to clear the road and later on prayed at the temple.
Speaking to reporters outside the temple, the Trinamool leader said, “Those who were saying Atithi Devo Bhava (the guest is god) a few days back, I have just seen their kind of hospitality. They (BJP) go to Bengal and speak about safeguarding democracy. First, they should come to Tripura and see the meaning of democracy here.”
“Three of my security guards were badly wounded. But, they (BJP) are not getting the point that we are not here to buck out. We will fight this BJP tooth and nail on the ground, politically. And we will bring the government to your doorstep. Trinamool Congress is not like the Left Front, which retreats in the face of threats. It is more like iron and gets stronger with every blow. By attacking me, they have shown today how much they are scared. We will surely take on the BJP in Tripura in the next elections,” Banerjee later said at a media interaction.
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