Gosaba: Union minister Debashree Chaudhuri was on Friday stoppped from visiting cyclone 'Bulbul'-affected Gosaba area of South 24 Paraganas allegedly by TMC activists, who blocked her convoy and raised "go back" slogans.
Chaudhuri, who has been asked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the areas impacted by the cyclone in West Bengal, was on her way to Gosaba to assess the extent of damages caused by 'Bulbul', which claimed at least nine lives in the state.
The minister said when she reached Dayapur Ghat, TMC activists stopped her convoy, started banging on the bonnet of her car and shouted slogans.
Criticising the Mamata Banerjee-led party for engaging in "dirty politics" over her visit, Chaudhuri said she would submit a report on the incident to the prime minister.
The TMC district leadership, however, termed the allegations as baseless and said the party was not involved in any such demonstration.
Chaudhuri also claimed that the TMC activists pelted stones at BJP workers accompanying her and abused them. "The police was a mute spectator. Instead of stopping the mob, the police pleaded with us to leave in order to control the situation. This is absurd. I would report the matter to the PM and take it up in Parliament," she said.
"This is completely undemocratic that a Union minister, who is on an official visit, is stopped from doing her job. Such things never happen in any other part of the
country," the Minister of State for Woman and Child Development said.
Chaudhuri said she managed to speak to locals at Daya Ghat and enquired about their condition in the aftermath of the cyclone, which made landfall on Saturday between West Bengal and Bangladesh coasts.
Rajya Sabha MP and TMC South 24 Parganas District president Subhasish Chakraborty questioned the presence of BJP workers who accompanied the minister.
"What is she doing there now? Where was she when the cyclone barrelled through the coastal areas? If she is on an official visit, why was she accompanied by the BJP workers?" he said.
Chaudhuri said there was nothing wrong in party workers travelling with an MP. "When the chief minister visits districts, we have seen TMC activists accompanying her. So what is wrong in BJP supporters accompanying me?
"The TMC has failed to provide relief and is trying to divert attention by politicising the matter. Several locals complained about lack of relief materials and food for the last four-five days," she alleged.
According to the police, a few BJP and TMC activists were injured in clashes between both the parties at Daya Ghat. On Wednesday, Union minister Babul Supriyo had faced a similar protest during his visit to the district.
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