Murshidabad (West Bengal) [India], April 26 : High tension gripped the Baharampur Assembly constituency today as senior Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury rushed to following reports of a brutal assault on a local family.
Chowdhury alleged that miscreants linked to the Trinamool Congress (TMC) vandalised a home and assaulted its residents, including women and an elderly man, in a targeted act of retribution.
The incident occurred just days after the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections, where Murshidabad saw a record-breaking 92% voter turnout amidst sporadic clashes.
According to Chowdhury, the violence was triggered by a simple act of hospitality. During the polling on April 23, the Congress candidate had sought a few minutes of rest at a local temple verandah to observe the slow pace of voting.
The family associated with the temple provided him with a fan to cope with the heat, a gesture that allegedly drew the ire of the ruling party.
"... I received a call, and a woman was crying... She said some TMC goons had vandalised her house and attacked an elderly man, leaving him covered in blood. She said that they also attacked her older sister, assaulted her and violated her modesty... There was another woman in the house, the mother of the girl. She was also beaten...," said Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
Chowdhury immediately visited the site near Booth No. 1, confirming that the victims had been rushed to the hospital with serious injuries. He clarified that he had no prior political connection to the family, stating he didn't even know if they had voted for him.
"I immediately rushed to the scene and learned that these people were taken to the hospital... I told them that I would accompany them to file a complaint with the Police. The local police are well aware of what these goons do...," said Chowdhury.
Linking the violence to the polling day atmosphere, Chowdhury reiterated his concerns about the "unusually slow" voting process in Baharampur.
He claimed that while most booths saw 80-90% polling, certain pockets were intentionally slowed down, forcing voters to stand in line for 4 hours in "unbearable heat."
"Coincidentally, yesterday, when polling was underway, I happened to be wandering around, noticing the long queues... people had been standing in line for three or four hours, and the election process was moving at such a slow pace... I sat in front of the temple for a few minutes to see if any of the voters needed any help. This temple belonged to the very people who were attacked. I have no political connection with these people, nor anything else. I don't even know whether these people voted for me or not. But I sat in the verandah in front of the temple... The priest saw me sitting alone and sweating, and placed a small fan next to me for my comfort... That's my only fault. The family who helped me there was attacked... We won't sit idle. Wherever there is injustice, violence, and the ruling party's hooliganism, I will go there myself... We will register a case...," he said.
The Congress leader framed the attack on the family as a direct consequence of their neutral assistance to an opposition leader during the "Special Intensive Revision" (SIR) controversies that have shadowed this election.
The Congress stalwart, known for his stronghold in Murshidabad, issued a stern warning to the local administration. He vowed to accompany the victims to file a formal complaint and demanded immediate arrests.
Chowdhury insisted that the local police are "well aware" of the perpetrators and must act without bias. "If the criminals are not taken into custody, we will not sit idle," he declared. "Starting tomorrow or the day after, we will launch a movement against the police here."
The West Bengal Assembly elections remain on a knife-edge, with the second and final phase of polling scheduled for April 29. As the "Kolkata belt" prepares to vote, this latest incident in Murshidabad underscores the volatile security situation that has characterised the 2026 democratic exercise.
Meanwhile, the polling for Phase I of the Assembly elections concluded at 6 pm on Thursday, with West Bengal recording a significantly higher voter turnout of 91.78 per cent, according to the Election Commission of India.
The high turnout figures underline an active electoral exercise as polling drew to a close amid tight security arrangements across constituencies. The polling for the second phase will be held on April 29, with counting of votes scheduled for May 4.