As the rally led by Gandhi entered the Bengal territory at Boxirhat in Tufanganj subdivision in Cooch Behar district of West Bengal, he was welcomed by senior Congress leaders, including the state Congress president and the five-time party Lok Sabha member, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
Meanwhile, since the entry of the rally in Bengal’s territory, it has started facing administrative hurdles. The original stage that was set up to welcome Rahul Gandhi had to be dismantled and raised at an alternative private place.
“The police themselves dismantled the original stage set up for that purpose. The cops claimed that the stage was raised without police permission on the national highway. So we had to set up the same welcome stage at a private place on the opposite side of the road,” said senior Congress leader from Cooch Behar district M.M. Hossain.
Incidentally, on Wednesday only the Trinamool Congress supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made an official announcement of her party contesting alone in West Bengal from all the 42 constituencies in the state in the Lok Sabha polls scheduled this year.
State Congress leaders said that the schedule of Nyay Yatra at Jalpaiguri town on January 28 will also have to be changed to an extent following the insistence of the district police authorities.
“The district police have communicated to us insisting that the Nyay Yatra rally enters Jalpaiguri town only after 2 p.m. on Sunday, since on that morning there will be a police recruitment examination in the town. Rahul Gandhi was supposed to have his lunch at the same venue where he was supposed to hold a rally. Now with the police communiqué not only the schedule of the rally will have to be changed but so will be the venue for his lunch,” a senior state Congress leader said.
IANS