'Anti-Bengal BJP go back': BJP-Trinamool in war of words over poster as Amit Shah visits Kolkata today

Ahead of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah's rally in Kolkata, posters asking the party to leave the state have emerged on the streets.

Posters asking the "BJP to leave Bengal" were seen put up in and around his rally venue at Mayo Road, in the central part of the city.

The state BJP unit alleged that the placards with messages were put up by Trinamool Congress (TMC) cadres, a charge denied by the ruling party.

BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya told PTI that TMC had put up similar posters during Shah's visit to Purulia in June and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally in West Midnapore last month.

However, TMC secretary-general and Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee said his party had nothing to do with the "anti-BJP posters". The route that Shah would take to reach the venue tomorrow, however, was seen dotted with cutouts of party supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Meanwhile, the saffron party, wary after a tent collapsed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Midnapore rally in July, have also urged to the police to allow the use of walkie-talkies by party workers during

As a safety measure the state BJP leadership has appointed a decorator from Jharkhand to prepare the venue for Amit Shah's Saturday rally.

Three decorators have been appointed to prepare the stage and the venue for the programme, he said adding two of the three are from Kolkata and one from Jharkhand.

Well trained party volunteers will also be deployed at the venue to control the crowd, he said.

A BJP delegation led by Vijayvargiya and P Murlidhar Rao and other state-level leaders visited the rally venue yesterday and took stock of the preparations.

Over 90 people were injured on July 16 after a section of a tent caved in during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech at a public rally in West Bengal's Midnapore district.

(With agency inputs)