CM announces Rs 2 lakh compensation for next of kin of post-poll violence victims

KOLKATA: Stating that most incidents of violence were occurring in places where BJP had won, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday announced compensation worth Rs 2 lakh each for the next of kin of those killed in post-poll violence.

The Chief Minister said the post-poll violence claimed 16 lives. "Half of the victims were TMC workers while half were of BJP and one was a worker of Sanjukta Morcha," Banerjee said while addressing the media at Nabanna.

In the same breath, she urged all the political parties not to indulge in any sort of violence as it may lead to loss of life. She further said the state government decided to provide compensation to the bereaved family members to stand by them irrespective of which political party and religion they belong to.

Stating that there will be no discrimination, she said: "You all know that most of the incidents took place when the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) was in place till May 3 and the law and order was in the hands of the Election Commission (EC). It was during this period that 16 people were killed."

She further said: "We do not want violence to take place. Most reports of post-poll violence were received from places where BJP had won. We are identifying such places as black spots. What is happening in Cooch Behar today? Udayan Guha (former MLA from Dinhata in Cooch Behar) was beaten up and his hand was fractured."

"I had enquired from one of our councillors during my visit to Sambhunath Pandit Hospital on Wednesday whether they were getting indulged in any kind of violence. In reply, he informed me that it was BJP that was still creating disturbances despite their desperate efforts to maintain peace and harmony," she said.