Thu Jul 24 22:43:02 UTC 2025: **Summary:**
The article reports on two separate murders in West Bengal, India, involving members or relatives of members of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) party. Sasthi Ghosh, a TMC member, was killed in Bharatpur, and Rakib Sheikh, nephew of a TMC Panchayat member, was killed in Kakdwip. The opposition parties are criticizing the TMC, alleging that these incidents are the result of internal disputes over resources and turf control within the party. This follows a series of similar killings of TMC leaders earlier in the month, further fueling the controversy.
**News Article:**
**TMC Under Fire as Violence Erupts in West Bengal; Two Murders Spark Outrage**
**Kolkata, July 25, 2025:** West Bengal is reeling from a wave of violence as two separate murders involving members or relatives of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) party have ignited a political firestorm.
On Wednesday night, Sasthi Ghosh, a TMC member from Bharatpur, was brutally attacked and killed by assailants wielding sharp weapons. Police are investigating the incident, with initial reports suggesting a dispute over financial issues as a potential motive. TMC MLA Humayun Kabir acknowledged the involvement of fellow TMC supporters in the killing, attributing it to personal enmity within the village.
In a separate incident in Kakdwip, South 24 Parganas district, Rakib Sheikh, the nephew of TMC Panchayat member Salauddin Sheikh, was allegedly hacked to death.
The opposition has seized on these incidents, accusing the TMC of a breakdown in law and order and blaming the violence on internal power struggles. Former Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury stated that TMC members are “fighting among themselves for limited resources.” BJP leader Dilip Ghosh echoed this sentiment, claiming that “internal bickering among Trinamool Congress activists and leaders across West Bengal has reached a stage where they are fighting for turf control and ill-gotten money from crime syndicates.”
These latest killings follow a disturbing pattern, with three TMC leaders murdered earlier this month in what is suspected to be intra-party feuds. The police have reportedly arrested individuals linked to the TMC in connection with these earlier crimes.
The TMC leadership has yet to issue a comprehensive statement addressing the allegations and the escalating violence. The incidents raise serious questions about the stability and internal cohesion within the ruling party and are likely to intensify political tensions in the state.
First Piper 