UP ‘encounter specialist’ Ajay Pal Sharma’s deployment in West Bengal ahead of Assembly polls triggers row
LUCKNOW: Amid multiple controversies plaguing the ongoing West Bengal State Assembly elections, a fresh row has erupted over the deployment of UP cadre IPS officer Ajay Pal Sharma, popularly known as Uttar Pradesh's 'encounter specialist', as police observer for South 24 Parganas district.
The UP IPS officer has been deputed by the Election Commission of India ahead of the second round of voting in the State on Wednesday, leading to a sharp reaction by the incumbent Trinamool Congress.
The controversy involving IPS Ajay Pal Sharma heated up with a video doing the rounds on social media platforms related to Jahangir Khan, a close aide of a senior Trinamool leader.
Significantly, the deployment of Sharma has snowballed into a political slugfest, wherein the BJP and the ECI claim that the IPS officer has been sent as an observer in the state to ensure free and fair voting.
On the contrary, both the Samajwadi Party and the Trinamool Congress have accused the BJP of trying to tilt the vote in their favour by "deploying agents" to intimidate voters.
While talking to media persons in Lucknow, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said, "In Uttar Pradesh, all the by-elections were witnessed by the people; the police did not allow people to step out of their houses. We have heard that the same model is being adopted in West Bengal. Officers of the Central forces have been lured and told to make the BJP win. They have been told to stop voters from voting. They have been told to unleash opportunities in Bengal. The central forces' officers have been pressured to do whatever the BJP instructs."
"At the right time, there will be a thorough probe into the criminal activities of these 'agents' who are out to implement the BJP's agenda, and strict punitive action will be taken," Yadav added further.
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