Former BJP MP Arjun Singh alleges gunshots fired, bombs thrown at home ‘in front of police’, directly blames West Bengal’s TMC

“Bhatpara TMC leader Namit Singh and his 20-25 companions carried out the attack. Around 15 bombs were hurled,” the BJP leader alleged, while directly accusing Namit Singh and his team of firing shots.

On X, he wrote, “This morning, while everyone was occupied with Navratri Puja, several jihadis and goons under the protection of Namit Singh, an accused in NIA cases and son of a local @AITCofficial Councillor, attacked my office-cum-residence, Mazdoor Bhawan, with the local police looking on,” attaching a video of the purported incident.

Police have confirmed that bombs were hurled, but further investigations are on.

Singh claimed that he was sleeping on the second floor when the attack occurred: “I came down after hearing an unusual sound of people.”

However, the Trinamool MLA from Jagaddal, Somnath Shyam, alleged that “Arjun Singh himself fired shots” to “stay relevant”. “His men threw bombs from behind. Maybe he was hit by that bomb. He is desperate. Sometimes he blames Namit Singh, sometimes Somnath Shyam.”

“Bombs were thrown in front of 20-25 policemen. A few policemen were also thrashed by the attackers. There was a scuffle,” Arjun Singh said.

Incidentally, in 2021, the NIA investigated a previous case of his house being attacked and bombed. Singh had then alleged that the attack took place because he was performing the duties of a party observer in the Bhawanipur by-election. On Friday, Singh said that “a few accused in the NIA case along with Namit Singh attacked my house today.”

Leader of Opposition in state Assembly Suvendu Adhikari said on X, “This morning, prominent goons & renowned anti-socials associated with the ruling Trinamool Congress Party attacked the home of senior BJP Leader & Former MP; Shri Arjun Singh… As usual, the Police played the role of mute spectator and didn’t do much to deter the criminals. He added that video footage was enough to identify and arrest the culprits for this heinous crime. I hope DGP@ WBPolice will at least try to use the visuals for nabbing these miscreants. (sic)”

BJP leader Amit Malviya criticised state Chief Minister’s Mamata Banerjee’s government, saying that she gives “political patronage” to “lawlessness”. “West Bengal has become a minefield of targeted political killings and violence,” he said.

Once a TMC leader, Arjun Singh joined Mamata Banerjee’s party soon after Trinamool was founded. Since 2001, he won four consecutive assembly elections on a Trinamool ticket from Bhatpara. But in 2019, he joined the BJP after not getting the Trinamool ticket in Lok Sabha polls. He stood and won in Barrackpore. But after three years and two months, in May 2022, he joined Trinamool again. Arjun Singh returned to the BJP after he did not get a ticket in this year’s Lok Sabha polls and lost against TMC’s Partha Bhowmick.