Kolkata, Oct 13 The West Bengal BJP on Tuesday claimed that persistent protests by opposition parties over their vote theft allegations have become a source of “constant irritation” for the public and warned that people would “retaliate” if the agitation escalated.
A united opposition has taken to the streets over the past few days and clashed with police in the national capital, escalating its protest against alleged “vote chori” and demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The BJP has decried the protests as “drama”, asserting that constitutional institutions cannot be dragged into political theatrics.
Addressing a press conference here, West Bengal BJP Spokesperson Debjit Sarkar said, “Do not try to create anarchy. The people of India, the awakened public, have been showing restraint for a long time. Those in charge of administration are trying to ensure that the matter does not escalate.”
Later, he sought to explain his remarks to PTI, saying, “If there is an escalation in protests, which is a cause of constant irritation for the public, then common people will retaliate.”
Alleging that the opposition was incessantly targeting constitutional institutions, Sarkar said, “First it was the government, then the Election Commission, and now the Chief Justice of India (CJI). They have been building pressure on the CJI for the past few days.”
“Despite little public support, the Congress and the Left are seeking to come to power bypassing the Constitution and the democratic process and through a mass uprising on the lines of those witnessed in Nepal and Bangladesh,” he alleged.
“They are trying to overturn all the reference points of the Constitution,” he said.
Questioning the opposition’s vote theft allegations, the BJP leader asked why chief ministers in Congress-ruled states have not resigned if the electoral process was indeed flawed. “It cannot be that the Election Commission is right when Congress wins and a villain when it loses,” he said.
(PTI News)
