Afraid of getting killed, TMC MLA has his statues built so

Fearing that he could be killed, West Bengal's ruling TMC MLA Jayanta Naskar has got his own statues built so that people remember him after his death.

The 71-year-old two-time MLA from Gosaba in South 24 Parganas district hired a sculptor three years ago from Kumartuli, a Kolkata neighbourhood famous for potters and sculptors, to craft his two life-size statues made of fibreglass and a clay bust.

"Four criminals had escaped from the Alipore Central Correctional Home. After they were recaptured, they admitted they were hired by local politicians to kill me. The then district SP Praveen Tripathi had informed me about this. The state government enhanced my security to Y-category after that," said Naskar, who is now guarded by 11 policemen.

"I then decided to get my statues built so that if get killed these statues will remind people of me," he told PTI.

Naskar, who has been with the TMC since its inception, said his family members are also fear that he could be killed and keep calling him to inquire if everything was fine.

"I've many enemies within the TMC. These leaders belonged to other parties earlier and they are my enemies since then," said the father of five.

After he hit upon the idea, Naskar started looking for a sculptor in Kumartuli.

"After finding one, I had to go there more than five times for sittings to ensure the sculptor builds the statues with utmost exactitude possible," he said.

The septuagenarian politician admitted he felt a bit awkward after people came to know of it.

"These statues were built a few years back but nobody knew about it. The statues are kept in a room on the ground floor of my house. During a recent mass outreach programme of the party, some people saw them and clicked photos. I feel a bit awkward now," he said.

Asked where his statues would be erected, Naskar said the headmaster of a local school, of which he was the secretary from 1993 to 2016, has promised he will put up the bust at the institute after his death.

"About the other two, I've no idea. If the locals want, they will erect them at places they choose," he said.

When contacted by PTI, district Trinamool Congress president Shaukat Molla took a jibe at Naskar, saying he should get more statues and erect them in every corner of his constituency.

"I have never heard of such a thing. This is the job of someone who has got no sense. It's funny," Molla said.

A senior official said the state government has no information about any potential threat to the MLA but he has been provided with adequate security.