Humayun Kabir Arrested During Reginagar By-Election for Threatening Police

Murshidabad, October 6 (Daily Kiran) : A tense atmosphere unfolded in Murshidabad, West Bengal, during the Reginagar by-election on October 6, when Humayun Kabir, the founder of the Ajeeyup Party and a sitting MLA, was arrested. Kabir allegedly threatened police and central forces, claiming that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and state police were manipulating the voting process.

Conflict erupted as Kabir engaged in heated arguments and physical confrontations with security personnel. He was seen grabbing the collar of a sub-inspector from the West Bengal police before being taken into custody at the Reginagar police station.

Kabir’s son, Ghulam Nabi Azad, is contesting this election as the Ajeeyup candidate. Earlier this year, Kabir won both the Naoda and Reginagar seats in the West Bengal Assembly elections but chose to retain Naoda, prompting the current by-election in Reginagar.

On election day, Kabir arrived at the polling booth with his family to cast their votes. After leaving the station, he spoke to reporters and threatened to confront state police and central forces.

“The police have surrounded my house since morning. If they come to beat us, will we just let them? We will fight back with sticks,” he declared.

He further accused the district police of harassing voters in Reginagar, particularly from minority communities, since the announcement of the by-election dates.

“Voters’ homes have been vandalized and looted. Attempts have even been made to dishonor female voters. It feels like Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has unleashed his ‘ferocious dogs’ on all polling booths in Reginagar. We will not let the ruling party use the police to strip the common people of their voting rights. I urge the people of Reginagar to stand up against the police with sticks,” Kabir asserted.

The Reginagar constituency is expected to see a fierce contest, with over 65% of voters belonging to minority communities. Six parties are competing in this election, including the BJP, Ajeeyup Party, Congress, Mamata Banerjee‘s All India Trinamool Congress, the Democratic Trinamool Congress, the CPI(M), and the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP). A total of 14 candidates are vying for the seat, with 34 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) deployed to ensure security.