THE All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) has condemned the post-election violence that has reached terrifying proportions in West Bengal since the state assembly election results were declared on the evening of May 2. It said that 12 people have already been killed in the state, whatever may have been their political colour.

AIDWA condemned the outbreak of unbridled terror destroying lives and property and turning into a threat against democracy and harmony among the people of this state. They said that they would send hundreds of emails to the CM demanding her to take all steps forthwith to stop the violence and restore peace. They also demanded that all victims of violence and their families must have protection and compensation and sought legal action against anti-socials who are trying to foment trouble in rural and urban areas.

The association said that the violence was started by the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the party which won the elections. It also stressed that the reports in the mainstream media present it only as a vendetta against those TMC supporters who have crossed over to the BJP, ignoring the violence being inflicted on many other sections.

It has said that the mainstream media has chosen to be silent on the fact that ruthless attacks are being perpetrated by the TMC against any part of the population that is suspected of having opposed or not having voted for the ruling party, including supporters and activists of the CPI(M), other Left parties as also the Congress and ISF, who were a part of the Samyukta Morcha.

It also said that the mainstream media has not thrown light on the fact that the BJP, callous about the effects of violence on the people, is trying opportunistically to garner political gains out of it and is further spreading rumours and fomenting clashes which dangerously tend to get communalised from both sides.

“The first woman to die in the clashes was Kakoli Kshetrapal of village Nabagram, in Jamalpur, East Burdwan, an activist of CPI(M) and AIDWA, who had been on duty at the booth on behalf of the CPI(M) on election day and was hacked to death at her own home on May 3, when she confronted armed TMC anti-socials,” the AIDWA leaders said.

The AIDWA noted that there are also numerous cases of Left activists, including the Red Volunteers who are on the road with much-needed free services for Corona-infected people, being attacked, homes of party workers and party and trade union offices being vandalised or set on fire, on which the mainstream media is mostly silent.

The association said that the state administration is completely inactive and Mamata Banerjee, who has taken oath as the chief minister on May 5, has done nothing to control this terror apart from making a general appeal for maintaining peace.