Congress activist bombs son’s house for supporting TMC, arrested

A62-year-old Congress activist was arrested in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district on Sunday for allegedly bombing the house of his son who is a TMC member, police said.

Zahiruddin Sheikh hurled crude bombs at the house of his son Anisur Sheikh (30), who is the TMC youth wing president of Raninagar 2 panchayat area, on Saturday night, they said.

The relationship between Zahiruddin and Anisur soured after he and his wife Sefali Seikh joined the TMC during the 2018 panchayat elections. Shefali was made the panchayat pradhan by the TMC, following which she and her husband started living separately from her in-laws, locals said.

No one was injured in the attack as Anisur and Sefali manage to escape but panic gripped the area, police said.

Anisur alleged that his father attacked his house to prevent him from fighting the next panchayat polls.

The Congress dismissed the charges, claiming that it does not believe in violence, ”which is the hallmark of TMC”.

Zahiruddin also rejected the allegation, stating he was being framed by his daughter-in-law.

He alleged that Anirul himself bombed his own house to get sympathy from the people.

Police said Zahiruddin was arrested on the basis of a complaint filed by his son, and an investigation was underway.

A police team was posted in the area to prevent a further flare-up.