West Bengal Congress President Adhir Chowdhury was booked under attempt to murder charges on Wednesday for allegedly being involved in assaulting government officials and preventing them from joining duty during a bandh called by his party. Congress had called 12-hour long state-wide bandh on Tuesday to protest against the alleged killing of a student in Sabang college in West Midnapore district and the "terror and violence" by the ruling Trinamool Congress.
Chowdhury was booked under non-bailable sections IPC Section 307 (attempt to murder) and Section 333 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt to deter public servant from his duty) and other bailable charges of allegedly vandalising government property, damaging public transport and beating up police personnel during yesterday's bandh, police said.
FIRs were also filed at Behrampore police station against 500 other Congress workers, including the party's Murshidabad district president Siladitya Haldar pressing charges under several bailable and non-bailable sections, they said. Chowdhury had yesterday alleged during agitation at Behrampore that although Congress workers were observing the bandh peacefully they were beaten up by the police.
Reacting to the development, Adhir told PTI, "With this, the Trinamool Congress government has 'set in' motion a process to finish them". Chowdhury said that the erstwhile Left Front government had too tried this, but failed. "Trinamool Congress also took the same path. I am not scared. I will continue to protest against what I find wrong."
