Kolkata, April 6: Kolkata police issued a notice on Monday evening to Trinamool Congress MLA Ratna Chatterjee for questioning. Chatterjee is once again the party’s candidate. She is accused of vandalizing a local office of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Behala (West) assembly constituency, located in the southern outskirts of Kolkata.
Earlier in the day, following a complaint from the BJP, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against her at the local Paranashree police station in the Behala (West) assembly area.
The FIR was filed under the directives of the Election Commission of India (ECI), as the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is in effect ahead of the crucial two-phase assembly elections scheduled for the end of this month.
The West Bengal BJP unit had previously complained to the ECI, alleging that a group of Trinamool Congress supporters, led by Chatterjee, attacked a local BJP office in Behala (West) without provocation on Sunday night, resulting in heightened tensions in the area until early Monday morning.
During the incident, clashes occurred between BJP and Trinamool Congress supporters. BJP candidate Indranil Khan from the Behala (West) assembly constituency was also present at the scene.
Later, under Khan’s leadership, BJP supporters protested outside the local Paranashree police station and filed a formal complaint against Chatterjee.
The BJP also brought the matter to the attention of the Chief Electoral Officer’s office and the commission, leading to the registration of the initial FIR against Chatterjee and the subsequent notice for questioning.
Although Chatterjee is the incumbent MLA from the neighboring Behala (Purba) constituency, the party has nominated her for Behala (West) this time. Previously, the former West Bengal Education Minister and former Trinamool Congress General Secretary Partha Chatterjee held this seat for five terms.
This time, the Trinamool Congress denied him renomination due to his involvement in a bribery case related to securing jobs in a school, for which he spent over three years in jail and is currently out on bail.
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