Kolkata, May 31 (IANS) More than 24 hours after he was allegedly heckled and assaulted at Sonarpur in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal on Saturday, Trinamool Congress General Secretary and the party’s Lok Sabha member Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday broke his silence on the incident and described the attack as an “assault on democracy”.

After reports of the incident surfaced, former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday issued a message on social media expressing solidarity with Trinamool Congress and Abhishek Banerjee.

Responding to Kejriwal’s message, Abhishek Banerjee also issued a post on social media expressing gratitude to all those who had extended their support and solidarity.

“What unfolded yesterday is not merely an attack on an individual — it is an ASSAULT ON DEMOCRACY. It reflects a deeply troubling pattern that has become all too familiar under the @BJP4India regime,” Banerjee said in his social media post.

In the same message, he claimed that the attack on Saturday had further strengthened his resolve to continue his fight against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“Yet, intimidation and violence will never deter us from our duty towards the people of India. We shall continue this fight with greater resolve and determination,” his social media post read.

Meanwhile, his aunt and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday also issued a social media message condemning both the alleged attack on her nephew on Saturday and the incident involving four-time Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member Kalyan Banerjee on Sunday.

“Yesterday, BJP supporters brutally attacked and lynched @AITCofficial Lok Sabha Floor Leader @abhishekaitc. The terrifying videos are in the public domain. Today, our Chief Whip in Lok Sabha, @KBanerjee_AITC, was also a victim of a planned BJP attack,” read the former Chief Minister’s social media message issued on Sunday.

–IANS

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