Durgapur: The Anandapur area of Durgapur became restive following allegations of corruption in the name of securing houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. A local Trinamool leader has been accused of allocating government grant houses to another person instead of the genuine beneficiaries. In the wake of this incident, local residents surrounded the house of the accused Trinamool leader and staged a intense protest. The angry mob threw eggs at the accused leader, an act that has come to be known locally as 'egg therapy'. As the situation grew increasingly tense, a large police force from the Coke Oven police station rushed to the spot and rescued the accused leader from the agitated crowd, taking him to the police station.
According to allegations received from local sources, Bishwanath Majhi, a local Trinamool leader and resident of the Anandapur area adjacent to Nadiha under Ward No. 43 of the Durgapur Municipal Corporation, had many people fill out forms by promising to secure houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana during the Trinamool regime. Not only that, local residents have also brought serious allegations against him of extorting large sums of money in the name of securing government houses. Recently, with the winds of political change blowing across the state and renewed strictness beginning over the Awas Yojana, the poor and helpless people of the Anandapur area went to check the tracking or online applications for government houses. That is when sensational information came to light.
It is alleged that while genuine and deserving poor people did not find a place in the government housing list, completely different 'ghost' or influential people had grabbed those houses. As news of this irregularity spread, the general public of the area burst into anger. The finger of accusation pointed directly at local Trinamool leader Bishwanath Majhi. Subsequently, the angry mob gathered in groups in front of Bishwanath Majhi's house. They surrounded the leader's house and started sloganeering, and as an expression of their anger, threw eggs at him. Extreme tension spread across the area.
Upon receiving the news, the police from Coke Oven police station quickly reached the spot. To curb the growing anger of the general public and prevent the deterioration of law and order, the police force intervened promptly and freed the accused Trinamool leader from the encirclement, taking him to the police station.
Meanwhile, the protesting local residents have made it clear that until the genuine beneficiaries receive the government houses they deserve, they will not back down from this movement. The local residents have also threatened a larger movement if necessary. On the other hand, the accused Trinamool leader Bishwanath Majhi has completely denied all allegations levelled against him. He has claimed this incident to be a political conspiracy. However, this incident in Durgapur centering around allegations of corruption in a public welfare project like the Awas Yojana has created intense sensation in political circles.
