West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s allegations of attack on her in Nandigram was not a conspiracy the Election Commission of India said on Sunday after the state administration and two poll observers submitted their reports on the incident. The two poll watchers in their report said that Nandigram’s incident was not a planned attack but just an incident that happened in the crowd.
The Bengal government has submitted a second report to the commission on Saturday saying it was disappointed with the initial report. “The ECI had sought some supplementary information. We have sent a supplementary report on Saturday,” Alapan Bandopadhyay, chief secretary of West Bengal, said.
The state government’s first report sent to the EC on Friday didn’t clearly mention the series of events of the last few seconds when Banerjee was injured. The report stated that the chief minister was standing on the footboard of the car and something happened because of which the door closed, injuring her. However, the initial report and a few video clips hinted that a few people managed to get close to Banerjee, resulting in security lapses in the area.
Following the report, the police said that there were frequent changes in Banerjee’s plan due to which security arrangements were made at the last minute.
Action will be taken if it is found that there were lapses in the CM's security, added a poll panel official.
Both BJP and TMC have approached the commission raising concerns over the Nandigram incident.
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"The events/actions leading up to the attempt on her life, leave no doubt that the attack was premeditated and part of a deep-rooted conspiracy," TMC wrote in a letter to the EC while the BJP demanded an impartial probe into the attack.
The BJP had accused the chief minister’s simple injury as a stunt to gain sympathy.
Banerjee was released from the hospital on Friday after being treated for injuries on her leg, waist, and neck, following the attack. Mamata alleged that 4-5 people attacked her in Nandigram on Wednesday when she was present to file her election nomination.