Stones Thrown At BJP's Jhargram Candidate Pranat Tudu In West Midnapore, Security Personnel Injured — On Cam

The incident also saw vehicles used by media personnel being vandalised by the crowd. According to PTI, a police team was dispatched to the area to manage the situation. 

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate for the Jhargram Lok Sabha seat, Pranat Tudu, was attacked on Saturday while visiting booth number 200 in Monglapota during the sixth phase of polling. The incident occurred in the Mangalapota area of Garbeta in West Mandipore district, where Tudu and his security personnel were targeted by stone-throwing miscreants. 

Dramatic visuals captured the chaos as security personnel, using shields, attempted to protect Tudu. People were seen chasing him, and a large stone narrowly missed one individual. As more stones were hurled, Tudu, his security officers, and several media personnel were forced to flee.

Check Out The Visuals Here 

Tudu accused "Trinamool Congress (TMC) goons" of orchestrating the attack, stating that two of his security personnel sustained head injuries and required hospitalisation. The TMC, however, claimed that the altercation began after Tudu's security officers allegedly assaulted who was waiting to vote, sparking a protest. 

Amit Malviya, the BJP's Bengal co-incharge, also held the TMC responsible for the attack in a post on X, asserting that people were voting to "kick out" Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party. 

According to the BJP, Tudu was en route to several polling booths in Garbeta after receiving reports that the party's agents were being barred from entry. 

"Suddenly, TMC goons blocked the roads and started throwing bricks at my car. When my security personnel intervened, they were injured. Two CISF jawans accompanying me were hurt and had to be taken to the hospital," Tudu was quoted as saying by PTI. 

In response, the TMC claimed that Tudu's security team had attacked a woman waiting to vote, which enraged local villagers and led to a protest, A TMC leader stated, "The villagers got enraged and staged a protest". 

The incident also saw vehicles used by media personnel being vandalised by the crowd. According to PTI, a police team was dispatched to the area to manage the situation. 

The Jhargram Lok Sabha constituency is important for the BJP, which won the seat in 2019 after previously only two seats in West Bengal in the general elections before that. In 2019, BJP candidate Kunar Hembram narrowly defeated TMC's Birbaha Saren by a margin of about 12,000 votes. This election sees Pranat Tudu contesting against Kalipada Soren of the TMC and Sonamamu Murmu (Tudu) of the CPM.