Tripura: BJYM burns Rahul's effigy, Congress lodges FIR

The opposition Congress in Tripura has accused activists of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the student wing of the ruling BJP, of burning an effigy of former AICC president Rahul Gandhi here.

Senior Congress leader and former Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president Gopal Roy said the BJYM activists had taken out a rally on Saturday and burnt the effigy of Rahul Gandhi in front of the Congress Bhawan.

The party has lodged an FIR against state BJYM leaders over the incident, he said.

"We condemn the act, which was planned by the ruling BJP to vitiate the political environment of the state. We have lodged an FIR against three BJYM leaders and would intensify our agitation till they are arrested," Roy told reporters here on Sunday.

Police said the FIR was lodged against BJYM state president Tinku Roy, secretary Vicky Prasad and vice-president Joynal Das and the case is being investigated.

Convenor of TPCC ad-hoc committee, Subal Bhowmik said, "Since Independence, we have never faced such a situation in Tripura. The ruling party has stooped so low that they burnt the effigy of our leader in front of our party office. This was a planned move by the BJP to provoke the opposition."

Responding to the FIR, state BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharya said the Congress is making an issue out of the incident as they lack any political issue in the state.

"The effigy was not burnt in front of the Congress Bhawan. It was done near the General Post Office. The Congress had on earlier occasions burnt the effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said.