Congress infighting turns violent over ticket distribution

Widespread unrest over candidate selection erupted into violence at Bidhan Bhavan on Wednesday, as factional infighting within the Congress took a serious turn ahead of the Assembly elections.

The state Congress headquarters witnessed chaotic scenes, with agitated party workers clashing among themselves. Eyewitnesses reported heated arguments escalating into physical altercations, even in the presence of police personnel, who struggled to bring the situation under control. The unrest was reportedly triggered by resentment over the selection of candidates, particularly allegations of “outsider” nominees being imposed on local units.

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Protesters demanded the withdrawal of such candidates, raising slogans and staging a sit-in on the road outside the office. In one of the incidents, a Congress worker sustained a head injury after being allegedly struck with an iron rod. There were also claims of misconduct involving women party workers during the melee, while another woman reportedly fainted amid the scuffle. A section of Congress workers accused Youth Congress leader Kashif Reza of instigating the violence. Zahid Hossain, a ticket aspirant from the Ballygunge Assembly constituency, alleged that Reza had deployed individuals to attack party workers. Hossain himself has been denied a ticket, with the party nominating Rohan Mitra, son of late Congress leader Somen Mitra, from the seat. Tensions over candidature have been simmering since the Congress announced its list of candidates for 284 Assembly constituencies on Sunday. Discontent quickly surfaced across multiple districts, including Amta, Bagnan, Shyampur, Uluberia South, and Uluberia East.

Senior Congress leader and four-time MLA Asit Mitra has also expressed dissatisfaction over the selection process in Amta. In East Burdwan, protests over nominations led to vandalism at the district Congress office, where agitators broke locks and installed new ones. Similar scenes were reported from Falakata, where party workers ransacked the block Congress office demanding a change of candidate. Reacting to the developments, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, a member of the Congress Working Committee, condemned the violence and urged party workers to refrain from “such unruly and unacceptable behaviour.”