Purulia (West Bengal): With all five phases of the seven-phased Lok Sabha polls 2019 held in West Bengal being marred by violence, the sixth phase of polling proved to be no exception. Even as reports of clashes between Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) supporters kept coming to the fore, a video doing the rounds on social media showed a group of masked men, reportedly TMC workers, carrying modern firearms, and on their way to Purulia's Raghunathpur.
Armed with pistols and guns, one of the men can be heard speaking in fluent Hindi, "We are on our way to Raghunathpur to get people to cast their votes."
When asked if they belonged to any particular party, the man said, "why would we reveal that."
While the authenticity of the video remains to be verified, BJP's Babul Supriyo has accused the Asansol Mayor Jitendra Tewari of "spearheading the armed goons" who were reportedly attempting to enter West Bengal's Purulia district from Asansol.
Sharing a WhatsApp screengrab on his twitter handle, Supriyo tweeted that he had spoken to West Bengal's special election observer Ajay V Nayak, appointed by the Election Commission of India, and alleged that Nayak has confirmed that the men carrying firearms were TMC members who were on a mission to "rig polls in Purulia and Bankura seat".
Also read: 6th Phase: Bengal records 80.16 percent estimated final turnout amidst poll violence
The screenshot contained a message, apparently sent by Nayak, in which the observer further accused the Asansol Mayor of camping at Raghunathpur area along with the armed men, and said that the men are likely to make an attempt to "lure the central forces" manning the polling booths in the two Lok Sabha seats with "wine and dine".
The message further reads, "we have taken the matter seriously and will do the needful".
