'TMC purchased our candidates': Humayun Kabir levels bribery charges against CM Mamata

Kabir also accused TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee of indulging in large-scale appeasement of Hindus.

Murshidabad: Aam Janata Unnayan Party chief Humayun Kabir on Thursday alleged the ruling Trinamool Congress bribed several of his party candidates to keep them out of the poll fray.

Kabir, who cast his vote during the early hours of polling, was met with protests from Trinamool Congress supporters who raised "go back" slogans when the leader visited a polling booth in Shibnagar village in Murshidabad's Naoda assembly constituency.

The protesters, led by local TMC leaders, surrounded Kabir's vehicle and raised slogans while branding him a "BJP agent". The demonstration sparked tension in the area around the polling station.

Kabir, an MLA from Murshidabad's Bharatpur, who has now formed his own party and is seeking re-election, was suspended from the TMC in December last year after he proposed the construction of a Babri-like mosque.

AJUP activists alleged that members of the ruling party roughed up one of their booth-level presidents at his house.

Central forces deployed at the spot intervened and brought the situation under control, officials said.

Earlier in the day, Kabir accused TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee of indulging in large-scale appeasement of Hindus.

"Mamata Banerjee has purchased 27 of our candidates from various seats across Bengal at prices ranging from Rs 9 lakh to Rs 30 lakh. I started with 142 candidates and am now down to contesting in 115 seats," he alleged.

The AJUP candidate maintained that Banerjee doesn't need the support of Muslim voters of the state since "she has spent enough money in constructing temples and giving grants to Hindu religious leaders to polarise voters".

Asked about the BJP's winning prospects, Kabir said, "Once the results are out on May 4, you will find that Amit Shah is no longer visiting the state."