Bengal Congress legislator calls police 'dogs'

Kolkata, June 28: A Congress legislator from West Bengal on Sunday courted controversy after he dubbed the state police as “dogs” and warned them against becoming “touts” of the ruling Trimool Congress. The remarks by Congress legislator Ashish Marjit, who represents Khargram constituency in Murshidabad district, were made in the presence of state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. “I want to warn these khaki-uniformed dogs... there is a limit to pandering. Stop being touts to the Trimool. The Trimool is standing on the support of police who have turned into their touts,” Marjit said at a party rally. Marjit’s comments were slammed by the CPI-M and the BJP. “In Bengal, it has become a fashion for politicians to use foul words. The trend that was started by the Trimool is now being carried out by the Congress,” Communist Party of India-Marxist MP Mohammad Salim said. Condemning the remarks, state Bharatiya Jata Party president Rahul Sinha said: “This is not surprising. We have seen how Trimool leaders have perfected the art of hate speech and the Trimool is an offshoot of the Congress... such remarks are tural from that party.” (IANS)