Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in West Bengal: As glass of Rahul Gandhi’s car breaks, Congress cries foul

Congress leaders said the massive crowds in Malda district led to the glass of Rahul Gandhi’s car breaking and blamed a security lapse for the incident. Rahul was not in the car when the glass broke.

Written by Atri Mitra

Malda | Updated: February 1, 2024 07:42 AM IST

2 min read

As the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered West Bengal again from Bihar’s Katihar, Gandhi stayed on the rooftop of a bus where the flag transfer ceremony took place. (@INCIndia/X)

The back window of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s car broke on Wednesday as thousands of people thronged Labha Bridge in West Bengal’s Malda district to watch the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra enter the state from Bihar. While Rahul was on a bus when the incident took place, Congress leaders cried foul, calling it a security lapse.

“All policemen are busy with Mamata Banerjee’s rally scheduled in Malda today. Very few police officials have been deputed for this ceremony,” a senior Congress leader said, referring to the flag transfer ceremony where Bihar state president Akhilesh Singh transferred the flag to West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

As the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered West Bengal again from Bihar’s Katihar, Gandhi stayed on the rooftop of a bus where the flag transfer ceremony took place. “During the flag transfer ceremony, a huge crowd surged behind Rahul Gandhi’s car. Due to pressure, the back glass of Rahul Gandhi’s black Toyota broke,” a local policeman said.

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“West Bengal administration did not cooperate with us. I don’t know whether the glass broke or was broken,” Chowdhury said after the incident.

“Rahul Gandhi’s yatra is going through all these states like Manipur, Assam, Meghalaya, Bihar, West Bengal where Congress is not in government. Somewhere Rahul’s poster was torn, somewhere he was stopped, somewhere his car glass broke. One thing is clear whatever may happen, the yatra will not stop. It will continue,” Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said.

Earlier, the West Bengal administration had denied permission to Rahul Gandhi to stay at Bhaluka Irrigation Bungalow of Malda district. The Congress subsequently changed the Yatra schedule.

Atri Mitra

Atri Mitra is a Special Correspondent of The Indian Express with more than 20 years of experience in reporting from West Bengal, Bihar and the North-East. He has been covering administration and political news for more than ten years and has a keen interest in political development in West Bengal. Atri holds a Master degree in Economics from Rabindrabharati University and Bachelor's degree from Calcutta University. He is also an alumnus of St. Xavier's, Kolkata and Ramakrishna Mission Asrama, Narendrapur. He started his career with leading vernacular daily the Anandabazar Patrika, and worked there for more than fifteen years. He worked as Bihar correspondent for more than three years for Anandabazar Patrika. He covered the 2009 Lok Sabha election and 2010 assembly elections. He also worked with News18-Bangla and covered the Bihar Lok Sabha election in 2019. ... Read More

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