IndiaPosted at: Sep 18 2026 9:17PM


'Democracy on ventilator in BJP's Bengal': Venugopal hits uut at Pradhan arrest after Mamata's support

New Delhi, Sep 18 (UNI) Congress general secretary in-charge organisation K C Venugopal on Friday accused the BJP of misusing state power to undermine the Opposition in West Bengal after Congress candidate Milan Pradhan, contesting the Nandigram Assembly by-election, was reportedly arrested by the state police in connection with a 19-year-old case dating back to 2007.
In a strongly worded post on X, Venugopal alleged that the arrest came shortly after Mamata Banerjee extended her support to the Congress nominee, following the withdrawal of her party's candidate from the contest.
He described the development as another attempt to establish an "Opposition-Mukt Bharat" and weaken the country's constitutional democracy.
"Democracy is on ventilator in BJP's West Bengal," Venugopal said, accusing the BJP of having "successfully converted our great Constitutional democracy into a Banana Republic".
The Congress leader questioned the timing of the arrest, alleging that a dormant case had been revived to target the party's candidate immediately after Banerjee announced her support.
"Using a dormant 19-year old case from 2007 to arrest our candidate - minutes after Mamata Banerjee ji extended support - is a sign that BJP will go to any lengths to hijack democracy," he said.
According to reports, Pradhan's arrest took place approximately an hour after Banerjee announced that she would back the Congress candidate. The sequence of events has added a new political dimension to the Nandigram by-election, with the TMC's candidate withdrawing from the race and the party leadership extending support to the Congress nominee.
Venugopal invoked the Congress's historic struggle against British rule to reject what he described as political intimidation by the BJP.
"We are the party that fought the oppressive British rule and drove them away, these petty intimidation tactics by their cheap copycats are not going to scare us," he said.
Reaffirming the Congress's resolve to challenge the alleged misuse of governmental authority, Venugopal added, "We will stand tall against this misuse of power, and we will ensure the BJP's defeat."
The developments have brought renewed attention to the political contest in Nandigram, a constituency that has acquired considerable significance in West Bengal's electoral politics. The reported arrest of the Congress candidate following the TMC's withdrawal and Banerjee's public endorsement is expected to intensify political exchanges among the parties ahead of the by-election.
The Congress has characterised the police action as an attempt to interfere with the democratic process. The circumstances of the 2007 case, the basis for the arrest and the timing of the police action are likely to remain central to the political debate as the by-election approaches.
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Tags: #'Democracy on ventilator in BJP's Bengal': Venugopal hits uut at Pradhan arrest after Mamata's support
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