Cong flexes bandh muscles,the first in a decade

Mukherjee demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. “The Left Front government should be ashamed of itself. The chief minister should take moral responsibility and should not come to Writers’ Buildings from tommorrow,” said Mukherjee.

According to the state Congress leadership,it was only about a decade ago in mid-90s that Congress had called a statewide bandh. For the Congress the bandh was also a show of its strength and an attempt to recast its image as a party which has a strong organisational base in both north and south Bengal.

“Congress is a national party. Whatever strength we had we still have. It is the media that sometimes tried to write us off,” said a Congress leader.

The state Congress leadership claimed that the instances of violence where buses were ransacked and torched were caused at the provocation of the CPM.

Party leaders said the protests over the Mangalkot incident will continue even after the Friday’s bandh.

The Congress demanded action against the district magistrate and the superintendent of police,Burdwan,alleging that the administration was involved in the conspiracy to kill Congress legislators.

It demanded that those who had to flee from their homes because of the CPM cadres should be given compensation and rehabilitation.

“We will organise a protest rally at Metro Channel on July 29 and protest meetings will be organised across all districts in August. The Congress and Chhatra Parishad will again visit Mangalkot with relief material,” said Mukherjee.