In West Bengal‘s East Midnapore district, a National Investigation Agency (NIA) team was assaulted on Saturday morning while probing a 2022 blast at a Trinamool Congress leader’s home in Bhupatinagar.
#WATCH | West Bengal: NIA officers had to face protesters in Sandeshkhali while they were carrying out an investigation in connection with the Bhupatinagar, East Medinipur blast case. People allegedly tried to stop the NIA team from taking the accused persons along with them.… pic.twitter.com/UVoAO6uuPQ
— ANI (@ANI) April 6, 2024
Early reports suggest that bricks were thrown at a vehicle belonging to the NIA team, resulting in damage to the windshield. An officer from the counter-terrorism agency sustained injuries during the assault. The incident occurred at approximately 5:30 am.
On December 3, 2022, a blast occurred, causing a house with a thatched roof to be destroyed in Bhupatinagar, resulting in the deaths of three individuals. Recently, the NIA issued summons to eight Trinamool Congress leaders to appear for questioning regarding their potential involvement in the blast.
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The TMC has alleged that the BJP orchestrated the NIA’s actions. The central investigative agency had instructed the eight individuals to present themselves before its officials after they failed to comply with previous summons to visit the NIA office in New Town, which was scheduled for March 28.
TMC leader Kunal Ghosh accused the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of being responsible for the actions taken by the NIA.
According to Ghosh, the BJP has furnished a list of TMC leaders from Purba Medinipur district to the NIA, alleging that the agency intends to apprehend them.
The assault on the NIA team occurred two months following an attack on a team of Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials. The ED officials were conducting a raid on the residence of Shahjahan Sheikh, a suspended local TMC leader known to have close ties with the arrested state food minister Jyoti Priya Mallick, in connection with a multi-crore ration distribution scandal in West Bengal. During the raid, central force personnel accompanying the ED team were also attacked, resulting in three ED officers requiring hospitalization.
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