Bengal BJP worker death: Smriti Irani tears into TMC

Union Minister for Textiles Smriti Irani on Saturday accused the Trinamool Congress (TMC) of indulging in targeted killings of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers in West Bengal.

Addressing the media here, Irani said, "The ruling party in West Bengal is a part of a 'consolidated opposition' which is fighting against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As a result, they're indulging in targeted killings of BJP workers. The (TMC) government there has failed to maintain law and order and isn't able to deliver justice to families of victims."

Further lambasting the TMC, Irani added that the murder of the BJP workers in Purulia was a result of TMC not being able to digest the good development work undertaken by the Centre in the state.

She further said that the incident was an example of how democracy was being strangled in the state.

Earlier, Union Minister for Human Resource Development Prakash Javadekar equated the alleged murder of its party workers in West Bengal's Purulia district to a 'political murder'.

"It's a political murder. So far, 19 BJP workers have been killed. The recent killings in West Bengal are inhuman. We condemn this brutal political murder and the murder culture. The people of West Bengal will teach a lesson to those who indulge in such acts. Political murder has no place in a democracy," Javadekar said while briefing media in Kolkata.

On Saturday, the body of a BJP worker, Dulal Kumar, who went missing on Friday, was found hanging from a pole in Balarampur of Purulia district.

This comes a week after the body of another BJP activist, Trilochan Mahato, was found hanging from a tree in the same district on May 30.

As per the West Bengal police, the investigation into the death of Kumar was handed over to the Crime Investigation Department (CID).

Launching a scathing attack on coalition politics, Irani said that the parties coming together to fight against the BJP in the 2019 general elections was a 'backhanded compliment' for Prime Minister Modi.

"They're (opposition parties) struggling for survival. The coming together of several parties by forming an alliance against the BJP is a backhanded compliment to Prime Minister Modi, which shows that they can't win on their own. The alliance of the parties also explains why Prime Minister Modi is so popular among the citizens of the country," she added.

Speaking on the completion of four years of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, Irani further said that many people-friendly policies and programmes were launched for the betterment of the citizens of the country.

She added that during the last four years, there were no cases of corruption registered against the government or its ministers.