The Central intelligence agencies have alerted the West Bengal government of a possible terror attack on the BJP’s leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari. Based on the input, the state security apparatus has also circulated an alert to all its constituents. Adhikari is entitled to Z-category security.
According to sources in the state police, the intelligence agencies mentioned the fundamentalist outfits based in Bangladesh planned to attack Adhikari as he has been vocal against the atrocities and violence on the minorities residing in Bangladesh.
Speaking to reporters, Adhikari said the people of West Bengal were his biggest security.
“I am not bothered if anyone has issued any threat on my life. I am in public life and will continue to speak on issues affecting the people, including the attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh,” he said.
“People of West Bengal are my biggest security. They will protect me. If I am with the people, among people, on the side of people, there is no reason I should be concerned about any threat,” he added.
On the other hand, Bharatiya Janata Party state president and MoS Sukanta Majumdar slammed the State Government after several terrorists were arrested from West Bengal.
Majumdar alleged that the Trinamool Congress Government has turned the State into a safe haven for jihadi elements from Bangladesh’.
Suvendu Adhikari said he was not bothered about any threat to his life from Bangladesh-based terror groups, asserting that people of his state would protect him in case of any eventuality.
Indian agencies received inputs that the BJP leader was being targeted by Jamaat ul Mujahideen Bangladesh and Hizb-ul-Tahrir for his recent statements on atrocities on Hindus in Bangladesh.
Adhikari had earlier said that if the alleged atrocities continued he would lead sit-in demonstrations at the India-Bangladesh border and prevent export of goods. Speaking about the terror threat, Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said: “I wish for Suvendu Adhikari Ji to stay safe and healthy. He has Z category central security and if someone is coming from across the border, it is the responsibility of the central government. It is the responsibility of the BSF to protect the border, which is under Amit Shah Ji.”
This development comes following the arrest of three terror suspects from various parts of West Bengal recently by the state police’s Special Task Force.
The arrests have also started a fresh war of words between the ruling Trinamool Congress and the Opposition BJP.
On December 22, Javed Munshi, a suspected operative of the banned Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, was apprehended during a coordinated raid by the Jammu and Kashmir police and Bengal STF in Canning, South 24 Parganas. A Kolkata court gave the J&K police his transit remand till December 31.
Munshi’s arrest follows the recent detention of two alleged terror operatives of the Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), a Bangladeshi militant group, in Murshidabad. The suspects were rounded up during a joint operation with the Assam police. They have been identified as Minarul Sheikh and Muhammad Abbas Ali. Eight alleged ABT operatives were also detained as part of the broader operation. All the accused have since been produced before a court in Assam.
The developments have triggered blame-game between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP over law and order in the State and border infiltration from Bangladesh.
Kolkata mayor and senior Trinamool Congress leader Firhad Hakim emphasised on the proactive efforts of the police under Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s leadership and the “zero tolerance” for extremism.
“It is the Union Home Ministry’s responsibility to strengthen the Border Security Force and prevent trespassing,” Hakim stated, shifting accountability to the Central Government.
BJP leader Amit Malviya alleged that the ABT suspects arrested possessed voter ID cards from the Kandi and Hariharpara Assembly constituencies in Murshidabad. “This incident is merely the tip of the iceberg,” Malviya claimed on social media. “Illegal infiltrators securing voting rights have become an integral part of the TMC’s voter base, ensuring their sustained grip on power.”
