WB: BJP claims youth wing worker murdered by TMC goons, ruling party denies

Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], July 23 (ANI): A member of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the youth wing of the BJP, was allegedly stabbed to death at his shop in the Islampur area in Uttar Dinajpur district.

Sharing the information of his death on Sunday, Indranil Khan, the state president of the BJYM, said the party observed a 12-hour shutdown in the area on Sunday.
The BJP youth wing worker, identified as Ashim Saha, was rushed to a private hospital in Siliguri on Saturday, but succumbed to his injuries, said sources in the BJYM.

The incident comes amid a fierce war of words between the TMC and the BJP over a viral video from Malda district, purportedly showing two tribal women being paraded, tortured and assaulted.

Further, according to sources, a sizable police contingent was deployed in the area in the wake of the alleged incident to maintain law and order.

The deceased was the mandal secretary of the BJYM, the party’s young wing informed.

The BJYM state president tweeted, “BJYM karyakarta from Uttar Dinajpur’s Islampur, Shri Ashim Saha was brutally stabbed to death at his shop. BJYM will fight tooth and nail seeking justice for Ashim’s family, till all the antisocial elements and their political masters are brought to book for their ghastly crime.”

Ratan Saha, the uncle of the deceased, suspected the involvement of the ruling Trinamool Congress in the incident, saying, “Trinamool Congress-backed goons could be involved in the murder.”

“Someone had been pressuring him to cough up money over the last couple of days. However, Ashim refused to give in to the demand. The incident took place right in front of my shop. TMC-backed goons may have had a hand in this,” Saha added.

Surajit Sen, BJP’s district vice-president, Uttar Dinajpur, told ANI that the party’s youth wing called for a general strike in the Islampur area in the wake of the incident.

“Yesterday, a cloth dealer, who was also a BJYM member was stabbed to death for protesting against some TMC goons, who had been demanding money from him. He died on the way to the hospital. We observed a general strike in the Islampur area in light of this incident. We had requested locals in Islampur to support the strike.”

However, ruling out a TMC hand in the incident, ASP, Islampur, Kartik Chandra Mandal, said, “The deceased, Asim Saha, was a resident of Cooch Behar. He used to take care of his uncle’s business in Islampur. The incident appears to be the fallout of a dispute over money. There was an altercation during which the Saha was stabbed with a knife.”

Kanhaiya Agarwal, TMC district president, Uttar Dinajpur, said, “The person did not belong to any political party. The BJP is appropriating the death purely for political reasons. An investigation is underway into this matter.”