Need Impartial Probe to Unravel Truth Says Bengal Guv on BJP MLA's Death, Party Calls for 12-Hr Bandh

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday called for an impartial probe into the death of BJP MLA Debendra Nath Roy and added that political violence seemed to continue unabated in the state.

Dhankhar further termed the police's version that it was a "suicide" as suggestive of a "cover-up" and "police prejudice".

"Political violence and vendetta @MamataOfficial shows no signs of abating," Dhankhar tweeted. "Death of Debendra Nath Roy, Hemtabad MLA-Uttar Dinajpur District, raises serious issues including allegations of murder," he wrote on Twitter.

"Need for a thorough, impartial probe to unravel the truth and blunt political violence," the governor added.

"Police stance at top that it is 'suicide' is indicative of cover up- smacks with police prejudice, not without obvious intentions," Dhankhar said.

"Autopsy be VIDEOGRAPHED BY EXPERT TEAM AS PER SUPREME COURT DIRECTIVES," he tweeted. "Highest TRANSPARENCY be observed @MamataOfficial."

Roy, who was in his 60s, was found hanging from the roof of a verandah outside a shop near his house in Hemtabad area of the district, police said. The West Bengal police said that a suicide note was retrieved where he had blamed two persons for his death.

BJP has called twelve-hour 'bandh' in the districts of North Bengal today to protest over the death of BJP MLA Debendra Nath Ray.

Meanwhile, BJP state president Dilip Ghosh along with a delegation of party leaders met Dhankhar later in the evening and sought his intervention for a CBI inquiry into the incident.

"BJP Sr leaders MP Dilip Ghosh, Rahul Sinha and others called on me and sought CBI investigation of political murder of Hematabad MLA Debendra Nath Roy," he tweeted.

Dhankar said that the BJP delegation had expressed concern over "supari" postings of police personnel, tasked to "harass and liquidate" opposition leaders.

"Incident has sent shock waves. Have impressed @MamataOfficial for fair investigation. Police Officials cannot be "law unto themselves" or politically motivated," the governor wrote on Twitter,

"Inappropriate and demeaning treatment of opposition MPs and leaders by police officials will not be countenanced," he added.

Roy had contested and secured victory in the Hemtabad assembly segment — a reserved seat for Scheduled Castes — on a CPI(M) ticket but had crossed over to the BJP last year after the Lok Sabha polls. He, however, did not resign as CPI(M) legislator in the state assembly.

The BJP leader's kin has demanded a CBI inquiry into the incident as they suspect that he was murdered. The BJP called Roy's death a "cold-blooded murder" by the ruling Trinamool Congress.

However, TMC district president Kanailal Agarwal rejected the BJP's accusations, adding that it was for the police to probe the cause of Roy's death.

(With inputs from PTI)