Congress accuses BJP of hijacking West Bengal’s democracy after Nandigram candidate Milan Pradhan’s sudden arrest

West Bengal’s political heat turned up a notch on Friday when Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal blasted the BJP for what he called a “hijack of democracy.” The charge came after the party’s Nandigram by‑poll candidate, Milan Pradhan, was taken into police custody in what the Congress describes as a manufactured arrest.

According to Venugopal’s post on X, the police invoked a dormant case from 2007 – a lawsuit that had lain idle for nearly two decades – and used it to nab Pradhan just minutes after former chief minister Mamata Banerjee publicly pledged her support to the Congress hopeful. “Democracy is on ventilator in BJP’s West Bengal,” he wrote, adding that the move was an attempt to turn India’s constitutional framework into a “Banana Republic.”

The Congress, however, is not backing down. Venugopal reminded listeners that his party fought British colonial rule and would not be frightened by “petty intimidation tactics” from what he called “cheap copycats.” He vowed that the BJP would face defeat, and that Congress would continue to stand tall.

State Congress president Shubhankar Sarkar, speaking to ANI, admitted the party was still unclear whether Pradhan had been formally arrested. “The police came and took him, but they haven’t shown an arrest yet,” he said, describing the confusion that followed.

Sarkar recounted that after the nomination‑paper scrutiny on Thursday, Pradhan was out campaigning all day. “A climate of fear is being created everywhere,” the candidate told him, before police in plain clothes swooped in at the Chandipur hotel where Pradhan was staying. The officers reportedly did not disclose why they were there, and the hotel owner, as well as Congress leaders present, heard conflicting information about whether the candidate would be taken to Chandipur or Nandigram police stations.

Both the Chandipur and Nandigram stations, according to Sarkar, claimed they had no knowledge of Pradhan’s whereabouts, prompting the Congress to file a written complaint with the Election Commission and to seek a High Court intervention.

Mamata Banerjee’s earlier announcement that her Trinamool faction would back the Congress candidate was highlighted as a catalyst for the police action. “If any political party or person comes forward to support Congress, we welcome them,” Sarkar said, adding that the support was meant to strengthen the broader INDIA bloc.

The Nandigram Assembly by‑poll is slated for October 6, with counting on October 9. Apart from Milan Pradhan for Congress, the BJP has fielded Hasirani Rath, while the CPI’s nominee is Shanti Gopal Giri.

As the drama unfolds, Congress insists it will pursue every legal avenue, demanding clarity on Pradhan’s location and calling for the election machinery to remain free from political interference.