Kolkata, Oct 19 — A book stall set up by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) in Phulia area of West Bengal’s Nadia district was allegedly vandalised and set on fire late on Sunday night, the police said on Monday.
The CPI (M) accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of carrying out the attack, but the ruling party denied the allegation.
Following the incident, CPI (M) workers reached the spot and caught a person on suspicion of involvement in the attack. They handed him over to the police, while another suspect allegedly fled.
The incident took place near Phulia Rangamancha on Phulia-Taherpur Road, where the CPI (M) had set up a book stall for the annual Sharad Mela. The stall was inaugurated on October 16.
According to party workers, photographs of scholars, book stands, and benches arranged for workers to sit were vandalised and set on fire. A complaint has been lodged with Santipur police station in connection with the incident.
The attack comes amid allegations of similar incidents targeting CPI (M) book stalls in several parts of West Bengal, including Kolkata and its suburbs, Howrah and Hooghly.
CPI (M) workers claimed that attempts had been made to obstruct the setting up of the Phulia stall even before it was established. They alleged that BJP workers had put up banners and posters at the location where the party had been operating its book stall for the past few years.
As a result, the CPI (M) was forced to shift the stall to a new location about 50 to 60 metres away from its usual site, party workers said.
The party further alleged that the administration ordered the demolition of the book stall a day after its inauguration. However, the CPI (M) maintained that it had set up the stall after consulting the police administration, securing permission from the fair organising committee and holding discussions with the sub-divisional magistrate.
The police are looking into the complaint and the circumstances surrounding the alleged vandalism and arson. The allegations against the BJP have not been independently established.