Poll panel puts Trinamool Congress leader under surveillance

Mandal is accused of terrorising voters, police and election employees

Supporters of Trinamool Congress party holding umbrellas with party symbol walk in an election campaign rally in Kolkata | AP Supporters of Trinamool Congress party holding umbrellas with party symbol walk in an election campaign rally in Kolkata | AP

The Election Commission on Sunday took an unprecedented decision to keep a Trinamool Congress leader in Birbhum under the surveillance of central armed police forces. He would not be given access even to his mobile phone.

Anubrata Mandal, district president of the Trinamool Congress in Birbhum, is accused of terrorising voters, police and employees on election duties. Mandal is known to be very close to party supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The decision came two days after Banerjee went to Birbhum and publicly asked Mandal to "fight like a tiger” and if needed he “better make people worried".

The video clip was sent to the election commission by opposition parties.

The commission said on Sunday in a message to the state administration, "Shri Anubrata Mondal may be kept under tight surveillance of Executive Magistrate and CAPF, round the clock from 6 pm on 28th April, '19 till  7 am on 30th April,'19. Simultaneously, videography to be arranged and no access be given to his mobile"

Mandal in 2016 had asked his party workers to set ablaze the houses of opposition parties and even asked his partymen to hurl bombs at police if they went to rescue opposition parties.

As opposition parties demanded action against him, Mandal on Sunday said, "No district magistrate or senior official in the state has the power to arrest me. Let them try whatever they could."

Birbhum is considered to be one of the most violent prone districts of West Bengal which has two seats going to polls on Monday—Bolpur and Birbhum.

Tagore's Shantiniketan is located in Bolpur which was earlier the constituency for well known Marxist leader Somnath Chatterjee, former speaker of LoK Sabha.