Siliguri mayor Gautam Deb, the Trinamool candidate contesting from the Siliguri Assembly seat, and Shankar Ghosh, the BJP's sitting MLA who his party has again fielded from the seat, got into a war of words on Monday.
Deb alleged that BJP workers, at Ghosh's behest, tore down and defaced Trinamool's publicity materials. Ghosh levelled similar allegations of Trinamool targeting the BJP's publicity materials. Both Deb and Ghosh sought immediate steps from the police against the alleged vandalism.
Deb said that on Sunday night, he got information that some posters and banners bearing his and party supremo Mamata Banerjee's photos had been defaced in some locations of the city.
On Monday morning, Deb and some party leaders staged an hour-long demonstration near the pedestal of the Mahatma Gandhi statue on Kutcheri Road.
“I have been in politics for decades now, but have never witnessed such condemnable acts in Siliguri. The BJP is indulging in such activities. The party has torn down or damaged at least 50 per cent of our flags, festoons, banners and posters. This is unacceptable,” said Deb, who claimed to possess video footage and photos as proof.
“We will approach the police and the district election officer. Such acts must be stopped,” he added.
Based on Trinamool's complaint, as a police team reached the area to probe the allegation, the BJP MLA Ghosh went to the spot and had a heated exchange with the police officers.
“Our publicity materials have also been damaged and posters have been torn," Ghosh said. "We want the police to arrest all those who were involved such vandalism. We never endorse such acts. "
On the charges levelled by Deb, MLA Ghosh dismissed them. “The mayor seems to be excited…. But unlike him, I will not bring such charges against him. We are reaching out to people. We don’t think that by tearing down posters and party flags, anyone can weaken their political rival,” said Ghosh.
In the 2021 polls, Deb had lost to the BJP's Sikha Chatterjee from Dabgram-Fulbari. This time, he decided to contest from his hometown.