Kolkata, 18 February (H.S.) : Ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal, the Bharatiya Janata Party has alleged that leaders of the All India Trinamool Congress intimidated one of its local functionaries and threatened him with dire consequences in Birbhum district.

According to local sources, the BJP leader has been identified as Ramakrishna Mandal, a resident of Kurgram in the Thupsara area under Nanoor in Birbhum. The party claimed that unidentified individuals placed items commonly associated with funeral rituals outside his residence in an apparent attempt to create fear among his family members.

Residents of the area stated that Mandal, who serves as a BJP mandal president, had gone to sleep on Tuesday night after dinner. On Wednesday morning, he allegedly found white cloth, incense sticks, flower garlands and sweets placed in front of his house. Locals said such items are traditionally used in post-death rituals, and their placement was perceived as a symbolic threat.

The BJP described the incident as part of a broader strategy to intimidate its leaders and workers ahead of the polls. Mandal alleged that with the Assembly elections approaching, the ruling party was attempting to frighten opposition members into withdrawing from political activity. He said his family was deeply disturbed by the incident and confirmed that a complaint had been lodged with the local police.

The Trinamool Congress, however, denied the allegations and termed them baseless. Local leaders of the party claimed the matter was the result of internal factionalism within the BJP and asserted that their organisation had no involvement in the episode.

A senior police officer in Birbhum district said a complaint had been registered against unidentified persons and that an investigation into the matter was underway.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh