Violence mars cooperative bank polls in Murshidabad
The Statesman | 26 May 2025
Tensions erupted in Daulatabad, Murshidabad on Sunday during the election to the Maharajpur Agricultural Development Cooperative Bank, as violent clashes broke out between rival political factions.
The violence, which unfolded at Daulatabad High School, the polling station for the vote, prompted heavy police intervention and baton charge on the crowd. The election, seen as a significant prelude to the 2026 West Bengal Assembly polls, witnessed a fierce contest between the ruling Trinamul Congress and the Congress-CPI-M alliance. According to opposition leaders, the voting process was marred by intimidation, assaults, and organized disruption allegedly orchestrated by Trinamul-backed goons.
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Congress leader Manoj Chakraborty alleged that from the onset, the ruling party unleashed a reign of terror to derail a free and fair election. “Trinamul knew they would lose if voting proceeded peacefully, so they resorted to violence,” Chakraborty said, accusing local Trinamul leader Aibak Sheikh of leading attacks on voters. Polling was conducted across six zones, with over 1,056 voters casted from surrounding villages. However, chaos ensued when masked men allegedly affiliated with Trinamul reportedly stormed the polling booths, attacking both candidates and voters. “By the time police arrived, many had already been injured,” said a local resident. The CPI-M leader Sujan Chakraborty accused the police of complicity. “This was not just political violence — it was state-sponsored terror. The police stood by as Trinamul goons assaulted ordinary people,” he told reporters. Chakraborty likened the incident to how the ruling party has taken control of local clubs and now aims to dominate cooperative institutions. A heavy police force of 82 personnel was eventually deployed to control the situation, but opposition leaders claimed the damage had already been done. “Wherever police reached, the attackers vanished — only to return once the force left,” claimed a Congress worker.
The opposition alliance views the Maharajpur cooperative bank polls as a crucial battleground ahead of the state elections. They say Trinamul’s strong-arm tactics were designed to retain control over grassroots financial institutions that carry significant political influence in rural Bengal. As of now, no official statement has been issued by the Trinamul Congress, while police have said they are investigating the incidents and reviewing CCTV footage from the polling stations.
The election, rather than being a democratic exercise, turned into a flashpoint that reveals the high-stakes nature of local governance in West Bengal — where control over even a cooperative bank can ignite political firestorms. A Trinamul leader however, on conditions of anonymity said that no TMC party worker was involved in any kind of miscreant activities.