Trinamool Congress leaders sitting on protest outside ECI office in Delhi, detained

The Trinamool delegation has alleged abuse of federal probe agencies by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-run central government and has appealed to the poll body to create a level playing field for all political parties before the upcoming general elections.

The opposition MPs have sought a change of guard in central agencies such as the CBI, NIA, ED and Income Tax Department.

"We have appealed to the Election Commission to change the chiefs of NIA, CBI, ED and Income Tax and we are sitting on a 24-hour peaceful protest with this demand," TMC MP Dola Sen said.

Earlier today, a 10-member All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) delegation departed from the Kolkata airport for Delhi to meet the full bench of the polling body.

The Rajya Sabha MP also said that the arrest of two TMC workers by the National Investigative Agency (NIA) last week is not only "unethical but also illegal".

"They are also arresting several workers of our party through the NIA. Day before yesterday they arrested two of our workers in Purba Medinipur. Did the NIA suddenly remember a case from 2022 just before 2024 polls? This is not only unethical but also illegal," the TMC leader added.

The delegation of the TMC leaders included Derek O'Brien, Dola Sen, Saket Gokhale and Sagarika Ghose.

TMC leader Kunal Ghosh had earlier made a strong accusation that on March 26, BJP leader Jitendra Tiwari visited an NIA SP-level officer's residence and handed him a list, based on which the NIA is planning a shoddy investigation, spreading terror and arresting TMC booth-level workers.

The NIA on Saturday arrested two key conspirators linked to the December 2022 Bhupatinagar blast case amidst strong opposition from a disorderly crowd in West Bengal's East Medinipore district, resulting in injuries to an agency officer and the vandalisation of an official vehicle. (ANI)