BJP workers burnt tyres and blocked the highway in Sonamura under Sepahijala district Sunday after receiving the news of the death of party activist Ashish Pal. According to reports, BJP supporters took out a procession with the body and also attacked local offices of the CPI(M) and the Congress. Pal succumbed to injuries allegedly received during a clash with CPI(M) cadres at Kathalia block in Sepahijala district on the day of the counting of votes for the three-tier panchayat polls. Former Union minister Pratima Bhowmik and local BJP MLA Bindu Debnath joined the agitators and demanded strict punishment for those responsible for the death. “Ashish Pal, BJP activist of Sonamura mandal, was brutally attacked by CPI(M) cadres on the counting day on August 12. He died at 3 am Sunday at GBP hospital. We demand the arrest of CPI(M) hooligans,” said Bhowmik. Speaking to reporters in Agartala later in the day, BJP state chief spokesperson Subrata Chakraborty also demanded the strictest punishment for CPI(M) cadres involved in the attack. Meanwhile, the police arrested one accused and started a manhunt to trace the others allegedly involved in the attack on Pal. The three-tier panchayat polls were conducted on August 8 and the votes were counted on August 12. The ruling BJP which won 71 per cent of panchayat seats uncontested, swept the remaining seats where polls were held. The saffron party emerged victorious in 5,883 out of 6,370 gram panchayat seats, 404 panchayat samity seats, and 113 zilla parishad seats.
