Tripura Congress: BJP attacked youth leader, family for criticising CM Saha

The Tripura Congress has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attacking the house of its youth wing leader, Sahajan Islam, and beating up his family members in West Tripura district for allegedly criticising Chief Minister Manik Saha on social media.

The BJP accused the youth Congress leader of making derogatory remarks against the CM in a Facebook post and lodged an FIR against him.

"Over 100 BJP and Yuva Morcha supporters armed with weapons entered the house of Sahajan at Shantipara on Sunday around 11 pm and ransacked the property. His parents were beaten up and his wife was physically assaulted," Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president Asish Kumar Saha told the reporters.

Congress leader Sudip Roy Barman rushed to the spot but faced strong protests by the Yuva Morcha supporters, another party leader said.

As the tension gripped the locality, where the chief minister’s ancestral house is situated, a strong contingent of police personnel rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

Sahajan, a popular Youth Congress leader, in a Facebook live, lashed out at the chief minister after a vehicle carrying cattle was detained by a mob in front of the West Agartala Police Station, and a few untoward incidents occurred during Eid Al-Adha on Saturday.

“A man, who had been extracting teeth in his entire career in exchange of money, has been made the chief minister. The police have been working in favour of a particular community,” the Youth Congress leader claimed, referring to the CM’s medical profession.

“The attack on the political leader’s house and his family members shows that mafia raj is prevailing in the state. We are under an autocratic rule. His outburst on the chief minister was a reaction to what had happened across the state during Eid on Saturday. Instead of handling the issue politically, the BJP chose the path of violence,” Roy Barman told the reporters.

The Congress demanded the arrest of those involved in the attack on Sahajan’s residence and his family members.

The BJP on Monday strongly reacted to the Facebook post, claiming that it “defamed the chief minister” and lodged an FIR against the Congress leader.

“The Congress leader has insulted our chief minister. The way he attacked the chief minister is highly objectionable. We lodged an FIR against him and demand his arrest,” Ashim Bhattacharjee, the BJP sadar (Urban) district president, said.