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BJP MLA In Bengal's North Dinajpur Found Dead, BJP Blames Mamata Govt

The BJP has repeatedly claimed in the past that many of its party workers had been allegedly killed in violence by the TMC.
Representative image.
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Representative image.

A BJP MLA in West Bengal, MLA Debendra Nath Ray, was found dead near his home in the states north Dinajpur district, with the party calling it murder and a failure of law and order in the state.

NDTV reported that a family member of the MLA claimed that he was called by some people at 1 am after which he was found dead by locals.

“Ray was found hanging near a shop at Hemtabad area this (Monday) morning. We have started investigation. A forensic team has reached the spot and his body has been sent for the post-mortem,” a senior district police officer was quoted by PTI as saying.

The BJP leader’s family also demanded a CBI inquiry, alleging that he was murdered.

The new of his death prompted multiple BJP leaders to criticise the TMC government in West Bengal calling it “gunda raj”.

BJP chief JP Nadda took to Twitter and said, “The suspected heinous killing of Debendra Nath Ray, BJP MLA from Hemtabad in West Bengal, is extremely shocking and deplorable. This speaks of the Gunda Raj & failure of law and order in the Mamta govt. People will not forgive such a govt in the future. We strongly condemn this.”

PTI reported that Ray had contested and won the Hemtabad assembly segment — a reserved seat for Scheduled Castes — on a CPI(M) ticket but had switched over to the BJP last year after the Lok Sabha polls. He, however, did not resign as CPI(M) legislator in the state assembly.

The TMC has meanwhile rejected BJP’s claims.

The Hindustan Times quoted TMC leader Kanhaiyalal Agarwal from the North Dinajpur as saying, “I heard that he (Roy) died by suicide. Police are investigating the case. Let the truth come out. If he has been murdered, then the culprits should be identified and punished as per law.”

The BJP, which is looking to win elections in Bengal, has repeatedly blamed the TMC for violence against its workers in Bengal.

Last month, BJP’s Bengal chief Dilip Ghosh, had claimed that 103 of its party workers had been killed by the TMC in Bengal and even called for revenge.

“The TMC government once had the slogan ‘bodla noi, bodol chai’ (we want change, not revenge) but no one indulged in politics of violence like them in Bengal. They are unleashing violence on us. People are seeing this. We have to take revenge on these anti-socials otherwise people will not forgive us,” Deccan Chronicle quoted Ghosh as saying.

(With PTI inputs)

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