Kolkata:
Toy pistols in hand, Left MLAs demonstrated inside the West Bengal Assembly today and demanded answers from chief minister Mamata Banerjee about action against her party workers who were caught on camera yesterday brandishing and even firing real 9 mm pistols during a procession at Kandi in Murshidabad district. Left MLAs walked out of the House with the pistols after their protests. Later, the toy pistols were seized by the House marshal.
Ms Banerjee later condemned the Left for entering the Assembly with pistols, even if they were toys. She urged the Speaker to have the Left MLAs arrested. Fake or real, the brandishing of pistols inside the House had hurt the dignity of the Assembly, Ms Banerjee said.
She also claimed that she had received some information that yesterday's incident at Kandi was the handiwork of a TV channel which paid a few people money to wave pistols during the Trinamool march.
"Police is investigating. If it proves correct, action will be taken," she added.
Opposition leader Surya Kanta Mishra of CPM retorted to the chief minister's threat of arrest saying, "Why is the chief minister worrying about the toy pistols instead of the real ones? She has threatened to take steps against us. Let us see what she does."
Yesterday, at a Trinamool procession, party workers were seen brandishing pistols in the air and even firing them. They were on their way to a party meeting that was to be addressed by Trinamool MP Subhendu Adhikari.
Soon after the Left protests in the Assembly, the administration announced that two persons had been arrested in connection with yesterday's incident.