Kolkata, Oct. 15 -- The Mamata All India Trinamool Congress (MAITC) has alleged that police stations across Bengal are being used to collect affidavits in support of the faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee and Arup Roy, triggering a fresh controversy in Bengal's political landscape over the ongoing dispute for control of the party name and election symbol.

In a letter to the DGP and IGP, West Bengal, and the Commissioners of Police, Kolkata, Rajya Sabha MP Dola Sen alleged that OCs and ICs were directed to collect more than 1,100 affidavits from non-members of AITC, claiming that police personnel were using force and influence to obtain signatures. The party also attached a copy of the draft affidavit which, it alleged, police personnel were attempting to get notarised, describing the exercise as an attempt to "create a mockery of democracy".

However, the allegations could not be independently verified.

In a separate complaint addressed to the Chief Secretary, the Inspector General of Registration and Commissioner of Stamp Revenue, the Collector and Additional Collector of Kolkata (Stamp and Revenue), and the Sub-Registrar of Chinsurah, Sen alleged that district magistrates had issued unwritten directions to stamp vendors to supply around 25,000 stamp papers of Rs 10 denomination at every sub-registry office for distribution through local police stations. She further alleged that Rs 20 stamp papers could also be issued without entries in the relevant registers. The letter sought an immediate halt to the alleged practice. A copy was sent to the Election Commission of India (ECI).

The Supreme Court on September 28 directed both factions to complete their pleadings within four weeks and asked the ECI to decide the dispute within three months thereafter.

Reacting to the allegations, Sagarika Ghose asked: "When did the police and thanas start organising political affidavits?"

AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged that each of Bengal's 607 police stations had been asked to collect 1,000 dummy affidavits, potentially amounting to six lakh documents.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.