West Bengal minister Udayan Guha stirred a hornet's nest by purportedly asking Trinamool Congress workers to pull the moustache and beard of Union Minister for State for Home Affairs Nisith Pramanik after ensuring a massive victory for the party in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Taking a strong exception to the statement, the BJP on Thursday filed a police complaint against the minister, urging the administration to take immediate action against him. Guha, who is the state North Bengal Development Minister, is purportedly seen saying at a party workers' meeting on Wednesday that Pramanik has ignored his voters and should "get the treatment he deserves from the public" when he is defeated in the next Lok Sabha polls. A video of the alleged meeting, which took place at Shukarur Kuti panchayat area in Dinhata assembly segment of which Guha is the MLA, surfaced on Thursday. He allegedly claimed that the 2024 parliamentary elections will be preceded by a thumping victory by TMC in the panchayat polls that are due next year. He reportedly said that the Union minister had never set his foot in the area since winning the Cooch Behar seat in the 2019 Lok Sabha poll. “Nisith Pramanik will never care for you. He did not reciprocate the faith of the electors after his 2019 Lok Sabha win from Cooch Behar. Now help us win the 2023 panchayat polls with an overwhelming majority in the district. That will pave the way for Pramanik's ouster in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Think about wrenching off his beard and moustache after it," Guha reportedly said. A few days ago, Guha had said that those who wanted to hurt the Trinamool Congress will be pierced with scissors. The authenticity of the video could not be verified independently. BJP MLA Shankar Ghosh, who filed the police complaint in Siliguri, alleged that minister Guha has been threatening the opposition party workers time and again in the run-up to the panchayat elections. “Panic is being created among people. Such comments against a Union Minister are not only insulting but dangerous,” he said.e
