BJP urges Election Commission to ban Mamata Banerjee from campaigning temporarily

The BJP has petitioned the Election Commission to impose a temporary ban on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s campaigning during the ongoing Assembly elections. The BJP accused her of making inflammatory statements against central security forces, including claims that CRPF vehicles were being used to attack people and transport money.

Kolkata: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had approached the Election Commission of India (ECI) with a plea to impose immediate ban and campaign restrictions on the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for a specific period of time amid the crucial two-phase Assembly polls in the state later this month.

In the letter to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on Wednesday, the BJP had accused the Chief Minister of incitement to violence against the central armed police force (CAPF) personnel deployed in the state for ensuring free, fair and violence-free polls.

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The BJP had pointed out one instance where the Chief Minister allegedly made an “inflammatory and seditious statement” at a public gathering on April 7 where she said that “200 vehicles of CRPF were coming to attack you, people”.

“In a separate election rally at Harirampur in Dakshin Dinajpur district on April 3, Mamata Banerjee further alleged that “money is being brought in using CRPF vehicles”, casting aspersions upon the constitutional conduct and integrity of central forces deployed under the authority of the Election Commission,” the letter said.

According to the BJP, the aforesaid statements constituted a deliberate, orchestrated attempt to portray lawfully deployed security forces as aggressors and enemies of the civilian population, with the direct intent of instigating violence, creating terror among voters, and undermining the free and fair electoral process.

“The statements were made by a sitting Chief Minister, the highest constitutional authority in the State, before thousands of voters/citizens and have been widely reported in the national media and social media,” the letter added.

In light of the above public statements from Mamata Banerjee, the BJP had requested the ECI to impose an immediate ban and campaign restrictions on the Chief Minister for a specific period of time.

The BJP had also requested the CEC to direct the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal to register an FIR or cause the registration against the Chief Minister under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and the Representation of the People Act, 1951.