BJP to do "Pind Daan" for its 'murdered' cadres in Kolkata
The event is slated to take place on September 28 on the banks of the Hoogly river, a tributary of the Ganga. Sources say the venue will be Babu Ghat in Kolkata.
In a development that may put the heat on the ruling Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to hold a massive event at the end of this month where it wants to organise a "Samuhik Pind Daan" (rituals after death) for all its cadres in Bengal who have been victims of political violence.
According to Hindu beliefs, 'Pind Daan' clears the way for the final departure of the soul of the deceased from the world.
The event is slated to take place on September 28 on the banks of the Hoogly river, a tributary of the Ganga. Sources say the venue will be Babu Ghat in Kolkata.
What should worry the TMC is that the top leadership of the BJP including its working President J. P. Nadda is slated to attend the "Pind Daan". The BJP's West Bengal in-charge Kailash Vijayvargiya too will be in attendance along with the state unit leaders.
While Amit Shah has also been requested to be present at the event, sources say he may give it a miss considering he is also the Union Home Minister and his attendance may be seen as a conflict of interest.
The BJP claims at least 78 of its cadres have been killed so far, allegedly by Trinamool Congress workers or supporters. Recently, one of its sitting members of Parliament Arjun Singh was badly injured in a clash in Shyamnagar and Jagdatdal areas of Barrackpore. He was later admitted in hospital and photos of his blood soaked visage went viral. Following this, BJP leader Mukul Roy had said, "Mamata Banerjee is planning to murder BJP's Arjun Singh".
A slew of mysterious deaths, particularly in the district of Purulia were reported where the BJP workers were found to be hanging either from a tree or electricity transformers. The saffron party has claimed they were "political murders". This event will bring the issue, that has been the BJP's top electoral agenda in the state, back into discourse.
The BJP has been on a rising graph ever since the violence ridden Panchayat polls in the state where it managed to make inroads. Later, in the general election this year, the BJP's tally had jumped to 18 from a mere 2 in 2014. Political violence and rampant corruption have been two issues that the BJP used against the TMC.
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