Union minister V Muraleedharan alleged that his convoy was attacked by Trinamool "goons".
Union minister V Muraleedharan has alleged that his convoy was attacked by goons of Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress during his visit to the state. The minister posted a video on Twitter. His tweet coincided with the visit of a four-member Central fact-finding team. The team, led by an additional secretary, was sent to the state by the Union Home Ministry to look into reasons for the post-poll violence that broke out since the counting of votes on Sunday.
The caption accompanying the minister's tweet read, "TMC goons attacked my convoy in West Midnapore, broken windows, attacked personal staff. Cutting short my trip".
The video shows the convoy stopped by men armed with sticks and rods. The windscreen at the back of the vehicle was broken..
"If a minister's convoy can be attacked, then who is safe in Bengal? This is state-sponsored violence. We condemn violence in Bengal. Special measures should be taken to bring the culprits to justice," Union Minister and BJP leader Prakash Javadekar was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
BJP chief JP Nadda, who is also in the state on a two-day visit to look into the violence, has claimed that 14 BJP workers have been killed and nearly one lakh people have fled their homes.
Chief Minster Mamata Banerjee "has blood on her hands", added Mr Nadda, who is also meeting the violence-hit families.
The three-time Chief Minster -- whose party has registered a sweeping victory in the state in face of a huge BJP challenge -- has accused the party of instigating violence. Her Trinamool Congress has claimed that two of their members were beaten to death by BJP supporters.
After taking oath yesterday, Ms Banerjee called upon the people to restore peace and said law and order is a priority.
Among her first acts was the restoration of the state's top police officers in the posts they occupied before being moved out by the Election Commission ahead of the assembly polls.
"I appeal to all political parties to maintain peace. Bengal does not like violence. Please take proper care that there is no violence," Ms Banerjee has said.