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Mamata Banerjee's TMC, on Monday, posted videos on X showing two men allegedly talking about inciting violence during the ‘Nabanna Abhiyan’ protest near Kolkata on August 27 over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. In the post, the TMC alleged that the men seen in the videos belong to the BJP.
"...Shocking videos have emerged indicating a sinister conspiracy behind the Nabanna Abhiyan tomorrow. BJP has resorted to the politics of dead bodies under the camouflage of justice. Instead of asking CBI to expedite the probe, this is what the BJP is busy doing...," TMC wrote on X.
The call for August 27 Nabanna Abhiyan has been given by Paschimbanga Chhatra Samaj. As per reports, though the outfit claims to be apolitical, many BJP leaders have backed the protest.
In the videos, two men at two different locations can be seen and heard talking about how there is a need to incite violence during the protest or else the whole demonstration would be futile.
"It is not meant to be a peaceful demonstration. It will create momentum. Gunshots will be fired. Rubber bullets will be fired," says the bald man wearing an orange t-shirt in the 1st video.
"I don't think they will fire rubber bullets —," replies a man who claims to be a news reporter.
"No the protestors will incite them to fire rubber bullets," the man intervenes adding, "There is a huge political conspiracy behind this. Let's wait and watch how things unfold."
"You can't do politics...if there are no casualties, it will all be futile. We are confident there will be casualties on August 27," the bald man adds.
The 2 minutes 11 seconds video then shows another scene where a man can be heard talking about how if on August 27, there are no casualties the whole purpose of the protest will be doomed.
"If there are no casualties, we can achieve nothing.”
The man seen in the video accepts that there is a need to create an atmosphere which will lead to violence and casualties.
Watch the videos here:
Meanwhile, the Left parties have distanced themselves from the protest march calling it a BJP-RSS ploy to distract the "people's movement." over the rape and murder of a doctor.
Proposed rally illegal: TMC
Further, TMC leader Chandrima Bhattacharya described the proposed 'Nabanna Abhijan' rally on Tuesday demanding the resignation of Mamata Banerjee over the rape-murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at R G Kar hospital, as "illegal and an attempt to incite widespread unrest in Kolkata".
At a press conference on Monday, Bhattacharya claimed that the rally has been called without police permission and suggested it was part of a plan by some elements to disrupt peace and stability in the state.
Bhattacharjee, who was joined by TMC leaders Kunal Ghosh and Joyprakash Majumdar, emphasised that the investigation into the rape-murder of the doctor has been transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and dismissed the call for the CM's resignation as politically motivated.
"The call for this rally has been given on social media by Chhatra Samaj, which has not intimated police about their plans. We all want justice for the victim and exemplary punishment for the perpetrators. The case has been handed over to the CBI and the demand for the resignation of the CM is politically motivated," she said.
Echoing her stand, Ghosh questioned the rationale behind the rally's decision to march to Nabanna, the state secretariat, instead of the CBI office where the probe is underway.
Ghosh also presented the two videos posted by the TMC showing two persons advocating for violence to ensure the rally's success, which he linked to right-wing groups and some leftists, including the CPI(M).
He warned of potential disruptions, including outsiders being brought in and people possibly disguising themselves in police uniforms to provoke violence and blame police.
"What these people - mostly right-wing forces like RSS and ABVP as well as some leftists backed by CPIM - really want is clear from these videos. They want deaths. We have information that people from outside the state are also being brought to foment unrest during the rally. We have also learnt some people in the rally will be wearing police uniforms and fire on people to shift the blame on the police," he said.
BJP reacts
In response, BJP Rajya Sabha MP and state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya denied any involvement of the party in the rally, asserting that if any members of the saffron party attend, it would be in their individual capacity. The BJP, he said, has no official role in organising the march.
CPI(M) leader Satarup Basu criticised the TMC's claims as an expression of fear and desperation.
He accused the TMC of panicking due to rising spontaneous protests and asserted that the CPI(M) supports peaceful, democratic protests against the ruling party's alleged misrule.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) previously clarified that it did not initiate the call for the march but affirmed its support for democratic movements.
