Kolkata: War of words degenerated into fisticuffs inside the Bengal Assembly with the Trinamool Congress and BJP legislators on Monday exchanging blows over the Birbhum burning and mass murder case that left eight people dead last week. Another woman who sustained 65 per cent burn succumbed to her injuries on Monday morning taking the official toll of the dead to nine.
A number of MLAs from both sides reported injuries in the scuffle in the Assembly. But TMC legislator Asit Majumdar had to be hospitalised with broken nose allegedly given to him by Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari.
The incident started when Adhikari demanded discussion over the Rampurhat violence and Speaker Biman Benerjee turned down the request. Soon slogan-shouting BJP MLAs assembled near the Speaker’s chair demanding Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s statement in the House. The treasury bench too jumped into the melee.
Even as the two sides jostled - with the marshalls trying to separate them - blows started raining and Majumdar, an MLA from Hooghly district, suffered a blow on his nose. His spectacles broke and he was rushed to hospital and was admitted to the SSKM Hospital.
However, Adhikari who along with other senior leaders took out a massive rally of the BJP supports in North Kolkata said he was only trying to pacify to the two sides and had in fact escorted his party men out of the House.
