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EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
CALCUTTA, Oct 26: The Left Front today launched a campaign to, ``expose the lies in the allegations of Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee'' that she was assaulted by police here yesterday.
West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu dismissed her allegations as, ``lies and politically motivated.''
The CM refuted the Trinamool Congress leader's allegations that the ``male police personnel were deployed to deal with her'', while she ``tried to prevent the police carrying out the eviction of illegal occupants'' from Bedi Bhawan in South Calcutta yesterday.
``She tore her clothes herself to get political mileage,'' he told journalists.
Blaming her for trying to create a law and order problem, Basu said, ``She's always very violent.'' Basu, who had to face the reporters several times today, reiterated, ``She spoke lies and spread rumours which, however, failed to convince the people.''
He said ``a section of the media is backing her designs,'' and expressed surprise that ``despite all this, the peopleshould have voted for her.''
Meanwhile, Banerjee appeared to have been Stung by Basu's statement, and on her way to a public meeting, reiterated her charges.
She said, ``When a Member of Parliament can be put to such indignities, a common woman will have no respect in the scheme of (sic) the CPI (M)-led LF Government.''
She said Basu indulged in the, ``appeasement of police high-handedness,'' and added, ``As the days of the CPI (M) are numbered, a nervous Basu is trying to throttle the voice of Opposition politics in the State.''
She told reporters that her party had decided to take the issue to the people and disclosed that her party had already moved court on the issue of eviction which she claimed was `illegal.'
Meanwhile, both the Left Front and Trinamool Congress-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance are organising protest rallies in the State tomorrow. While LF chairman Sailen Dasgupta has urged the Front partners to hold protest rallies throughout the State to ``expose the opponents' design tocreate a law and order problem,'' the Trinamool Congress and the BJP will conduct protest marches from several important points of the City tomorrow.
The marchers will meet at Esplanade to, ``expose the LF design to gag the Opposition in the State.''
Dismissing Basu's allegation that the BJP-Trinamool is trying to politicise the issue, the State BJP leaders said, ``The police action and statements from the Chief Minister are responsible for generating heat and controversy.''
Trinamool supporters disrupt train services
CALCUTTA: Trinamool Congress supporters, enraged over yesterday's alleged attack on their leader Mamata Banerjee, blocked railway tracks at various stations of the Eastern Railway, resulting in the cancellation and detainment of some trains.
ER sources said Trinamool supporters obstructed rail traffic at Samudragarh, Nabadwip Dham, Salar on the Bandel-Katwa section and Palla Road station on the Howrah-Barddhaman Chord section in the morning.
As a result, six local trains weredetained enroute, each for an average of 90 minutes on the Bandel-Katwa section. The 5960-Dn Kamrup Express was detained at Purbasthali station for about 90 minutes.
Four local trains on the Howrah-Burdwan section were detained for 90 minutes, while the 5657-Up Kanchenjungha was stranded at Jougram for about an hour. Three Howrah-bound long-distance trains, including the 3006-Dn Amrtisar Mail, the 3036-Dn Asansol Express and the 3232-Dn Danapur Express were diverted via Bandel.
On the Sealdah-Hansnabad section, trains were obstructed at Bahirakalibari from 8 am to 9.40 am and at Sandalya from 8 am to 9.55 am. Trains were also held up from 9 am to 10 am at Bhagabangola in the Ranaghat-Lalgola section.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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