BJP demands arrest of Trinamul Congress leaders

The BJP and CPI(M) on Sunday lodged separate complaints against the Trinamul Congress at the cyber crime department of Kolkata police and demanded the arrest of TMC spokesperson Derek O’Brien for trying to “malign” the image of both the parties with a morphed picture.

On Saturday, Mr O’Brien in a press conference had showed presented two video clips and six photographs to show a deep camaraderie between the BJP and the CPI(M). However, the picture in which Union minister Rajnath Singh is feeding a “laddoo” to former CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat was found to be a fake one.

The BJP quickly pointed out that the photograph was morphed as the real picture was taken in September 2013 after Narendra Modi was officially declared as the party’s prime ministerial candidate. As soon as the BJP, along with CPI(M), lashed out at TMC for its “desperate attempt” to malign their image with a morphed photograph, Mr O’Brien wasted no time to remove that photograph and admitted that it was “photoshopped”.

“Today, we have lodged a complaint to the cyber crime department of Kolkata police against TMC chairperson Mamata Banerjee, party secretary Subrata Bakshi and its national spokesperson Derek O’Brien and asked the officers to treat it as an FIR. We want their immediate arrest as it was sheer attempt to malign our image. The TMC is scared to lose the Assembly election and this shows their frustration,” state BJP vice-president Jai Prakash Majumdar said after lodging the complaint.

The CPI(M) and the Congress slammed the ruling party for trying to brush aside the charges of a match-fixing between the TMC and the BJP. “The doctored image was distorted by morphing the picture of Prakash Karat with the intention of tarnishing the image of the CPI(M) as well as Mr Karat. The CPI(M) West Bengal state committee would like to request you to take appropriate action against such fraudulent act taking into cognisance the cyber crime committed under the Information technology Act, 2008 and to book Derek O’Brien under the provision of all laws as applicable,” read the complaint lodged by the CPI(M) at city police headquarters.

Left Front chairman Biman Bose wondered, “If professor Ambikesh Mahapatra could be arrested for circulating a similar picture of chief minister Mamata Banerjee then why Mr O’Brien would be spared for committing the same crime ” The TMC, on other hand tried, to push the matter under the carpet. “I had a conversation with Mr O’Brien and he has apologised for the incident. I think that is enough,” said TMC vice-president Mukul Roy.