Ex-speaker Chatterjee worried about rural violence

Kolkata: Former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee on Wednesday expressed concern over the violence in the panchayat poll process and said the state is heading towards a situation where demands for imposition of the Article 356 might come up.

“It is really a matter of grave concern that our state is going through such a violent phase where everyday we are witnessing so much of violence over filing of nominations. It is really painful to see that democracy is being throttled,” Chatterjee told reporters.

“Many people are questioning whether democracy really exists in Bengal. I don’t know, after a few days there may be a demand for imposition of Article 356. Some are already talking about it,” he said.