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The arson attack had unfolded on March 21, 2022, following the murder of local TMC leader Bhadu Sheikh. (News18/File)
Kiran Shek and wife Seema Khatun filed their nomination papers for the July 8 West Bengal Panchayat elections at the Rampurhat office. Prior to the March 2022 arson attack, the family was said to be TMC supporters but have now joined the BJP
More than a year after 10 people were killed in the arson and violence in Bogtui village of Birbhum district, family members of two of the deceased have filed nominations for upcoming West Bengal Panchayat elections on BJP tickets.
The massacre had unfolded on March 21, 2022, following the murder of local TMC leader Bhadu Sheikh. Among the victims were the relatives of Kiran Shek, who along with wife Seema Khatun, has entered the electoral fray. Prior to the incident, the family was said to be TMC supporters but have now joined the BJP.
The couple filed their nomination papers for the July 8 election at the Rampurhat office on Monday. They were accompanied by Shek’s uncle Mihilal Shek who lost his entire family in the carnage.
“We were TMC supporters till March 21, 2022. But see what happened after that… We have seen how corrupt they are. We have lost everything. We can’t take this pain anymore. That’s why we joined the BJP, because we think they are the main alternative,” Mihilal Shek told News18. He is trying to convince more people to contest against the TMC.
The political shift in Bogtui was palpable when one the first anniversary of the massacre, relatives of the victims snubbed visiting TMC ministers and leaders. But the families met senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah when he visited Siuri town in April.
“We have to take a side because we will never forget what happened that night. We will also never forget what happened thereafter,” Seema Khatun told News18.
Commenting on the developments, BJP leader and Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly Suvendhu Adhikary said: “Nobody will be with them (TMC). We are always with the people who require us. We will always stand by them come what may.”
TMC leader Kunal Ghosh, meanwhile, said: “Everybody has the right to support anyone, but there may be some more to this game.”
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