Bankura/Kolkata, Sep 13 : Union minister Subhas Sarkar was locked for nearly two hours inside a party office of his constituency Bankura in West Bengal on Tuesday by the BJP workers, who accused him of favouring only these close to him.
Sarkar was finally rescued by the local police and his central security personnel, official sources said.
The BJP karyakartas in the locality first gheraoed him as he entered the party office to address a meeting. Then they left the minister inside and put a lock on the door from outside.
The protesters gathered outside the room and chanted slogans against the Union Minister of State for Education.
They accused Sarkar, their local MP. of favouring people close to him and ignoring those who worked for the party during the Lok Sabha poll in 2019.
Police had a tough time rescuing the besieged VIP and his close followers, who were also locked inside the party office.
Sarkar did not comment when he came out as he was still facing the protestors, who jostled with the security personnel.
Police detained two protesters in this connection.
The state BJP leadership has so far not commented on the incident.
According to reports, the BJP workers clashed with Sarkar’s security guards. BJP Organisational District President for Bankura Sunil Rudra Mondal reportedly reached the party office to rescue Sarkar. However, the party workers protested around him too.
Local police arrived at the scene and arrested two people
Mondal reportedly said that the protesters were not BJP workers. He also stated that they were expelled from the party.
Reacting to the incident, All India Trinamool Congress said it showed BJP was “crumbling” in the state because of “infighting”.
“With each passing day, @BJP4Bengal is crumbling as infighting is reaching its peak! In Bankura, vehement clashes erupted, & BJP workers locked Union Minister Subhas Sarkar in the party office. While unity within the party is a myth, BJP is truly a shining example of a weak
foundation and misplaced priorities,” the TMC said.