A four-stage pattern has been maintained in West Bengal over the panchayat polls by the ruling Trinamool Congress this time, according to the former Union law minister and the BJP Lok Sabha member Ravi Shankar Prasad.
"The first stage of pattern is in the nomination phase, where opposition candidates are intimidated, beaten up or even killed so that the nominations are not filed.
"In the second stage, the opposition candidates are intimidated, beaten up and even killed during the campaign to prevent them from campaigning. The maximum violence is unleashed during the polling day where not just the opposition candidates and supporters, but also common voters become affected by that violence.
"Finally, after the counting is over the winning opposition candidates are either denied winning certificates or the process is delayed indefinitely," Prasad told newspersons at Cooch Behar station on Friday.
Prasad is a part of the four-member central delegation of BJP, which arrived in the state on Wednesday evening, to review the situation in the different trouble- ridden pockets in West Bengal. The other three members of the delegation are former commissioner of Mumbai Police & MP Satyapal Singh, party MPs Rajdeep Roy and Rekha Verma, The latter is also BJP's national vice- president.
On Thursday, the delegation met West Bengal Governor C.V, Ananda Bose and requested the latter to do whatever needful to bring an end to this series of violence and bloodbath.
Meanwhile, the leader of the opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari has informed that several safe houses have been made operational by the state unit of BJP in West Bengal for sheltering BJP workers who had become victims of violence.
"BJP & other opposition candidates are being tormented by the TMC goons for participating in the Panchayat Elections, while the Police conveniently look the other way. Is this Democracy?" Adhikari said in a Twitter message.
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