TMC holds election panel meeting, leaders say 'attack' on CM seems pre-planned

The All India Trinamool Congress election core committee on Thursday condemned the "attack" on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and said "it seems to be preplanned".

"The attack on the Chief Minister seems pre-planned and the election committee condemns this heinous attack. However, the programmes will not stop anyway. She will go for campaigning. This happened during Left Front government too," Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Partha Chatterjee told the media after the core committee meeting.

The meeting decided that a TMC delegation led by Saugata Roy will meet the Election Commission on Friday at 12:30 pm. TMC leaders Derek O'Brien, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Santanu Sen, and Satabdi Roy will be part of the delegation.

"We have noticed how Bengal is being ignored by the Election Commission. Other than Bengal all (the other 3 states and 1 union territory that will are facing elections) have minimum phases in the voting schedule," Chatterjee said.

TMC leaders will raise black flags and cover their mouths with black bands from 3 pm to 5 pm on Friday as a mark of protest over 'attack' on Mamata Banerjee.

The TMC leaders also condemned remarks of Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury about 'attack' on Mamata Banerjee.

"A Congress leader also made comments against the attack on Chief Minister and we strongly condemn this," Chatterjee said.

Chowdhury had accused Mamata Banerjee of resorting to 'siyasi pakhand' (hypocrisy) and theatrics to gain public sympathy after she said yesterday that she was injured after being pushed by few unidentified people in Nandigram.

She was campaigning after filing her nomination at Nandigram. Elections to 294-member West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases starting from March 27 and April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

( With inputs from ANI )