TMC govt misused CID to frame BJP leaders over Mamata's leg injury claim: Suvendu

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari alleged the previous TMC government misused the CID to frame BJP leaders after Mamata Banerjee's claimed she suffered a leg injury during her 2021 Nandigram campaigning. He promised legal action after the bypolls.West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari BJP workers had been harassed on the basis of false allegations and promised legal redress once the model code of conduct is lifted. (File photo)Nandigram,Oct 4, 2026 13:47 ISTWest Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday alleged that the previous TMC government had misused the CID to frame BJP leaders in an attempt to murder case after Mamata Banerjee's claims of a leg injury during the 2021 Nandigram campaign.Campaigning on the last day before the October 6 bypoll, he said BJP workers had been harassed on the basis of false allegations and promised legal redress once the model code of conduct is lifted.The allegation drew a response from Mamata TMC faction MLA Kunal Ghosh, who questioned why Adhikari was raising the issue on the eve of the bypoll. The contest has also gained attention after Mamata Banerjee extended her TMC faction's support to Congress candidate Milan Pradhan, while the BJP fielded Hasirani Rath and other parties also remained in the fray.Adhikari made the remarks while leading a foot march to canvass for BJP candidate Hasirani Rath, the mother of his close aide Chandranath Rath who was shot dead by miscreants after the Assembly poll results. Continuing his attack over Banerjee's leg injury, he said, "Under the previous TMC government, the CID harassed BJP leaders entirely on falsehoods. Attempt to murder charges were framed against them even though official documents do not show any fracture."A day earlier, Adhikari had claimed at a press conference that Banerjee had faked her leg injury during campaigning in Nandigram in 2021. He had held up a document, claiming it was her medical report and that it showed "no evidence of a fracture". On Sunday, he said, "Once the model code of conduct is lifted, I will take whatever steps required under the law. If you are genuinely victimised, you will receive legal protection. But if you make false allegations, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has explicit provisions for punishment," as he promised full legal redressal for "victimised" BJP workers.Adhikari also called for a bigger voter turnout in the bypoll and sought a victory margin for the BJP candidate higher than his own in the Assembly polls earlier this year. The bypoll was necessitated after Adhikari vacated Nandigram in favour of Bhabanipur, which he had also won against Mamata Banerjee.He also said the BJP had not received minority votes in the last three elections and expressed hope that the situation could change this time. "Let us see whether Muslims want Ram Rajya now. We do not force anyone to say Jai Shri Ram," he said.Responding to the remarks, Kunal Ghosh asked, "Why is he making the claim on the eve of the bypoll?" He also said Banerjee remained Adhikari's foremost political rival even though her camp has no candidate in the bypoll.Banerjee has backed Congress candidate Milan Pradhan after her nominee, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew from the contest following a meeting with Adhikari. Pradhan has been campaigning intensely since Thursday after getting bail from the Calcutta High Court, trying to make up for lost time.He was arrested on September 18, after Banerjee announced her support, in connection with six cases dating back to the 2007 anti-land acquisition agitation in Nandigram. He has since been visiting almost every part of Nandigram to seek support from voters.Besides the BJP and the Congress, the Left, ISF and the Ritabrata Banerjee-led Democratic Trinamool Congress are also in the fray. The Nandigram and Rejinagar bypolls will be held on October 6, with counting scheduled for October 9.- Ends