Not doing any politics, says Minister Gautam Deb

A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party leaders participated in armed Ram Navami rallies, Trinamool Congress leaders and activists participated in such rallies across the State in very large numbers on Sunday.

Brandishing arms

In at least one of the rallies in north Bengal, participants were seen carrying machetes and swords. The BJP and other Hindu right-wing factions also participated in similar rallies.

Many top TMC leaders, including candidates and Ministers, participated in the Ram Navami rallies. North Bengal’s Raiganj candidate Kanhaiyalal Agarwal, a TMC candidate, was seen at a rally where the participants were brandishing arms. Mr. Agarwal said it was not his responsibility to monitor the rally. “If anything is wrong in the rally, it is the job of the administration to initiate appropriate action,” he said.

Among others who attended the rallies included Arup Roy, Ashish Banerjee and Gautam Deb, all Ministers in the TMC Cabinet. Mr. Deb, however, said that they were “not doing any politics” connecting the elections with the rallies, adding, “TMC does not need to do that to win elections”.

No one displayed arms in rallies where the Ministers took part, the police said.