Will gouge out eyes of those who challenge TMC: Mamata's nephew

Kicking off a controversy, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek has publicly threatened to "chop off hands and tear out eyes" if anyone dared to challenge the ruling party.

"Those who dare to show their eyes, we will tear it out and throw it on the streets. If someone shows us their hands we will cut them off. But you have to remember that in democracy, it is the common man who will say the last word," he said yesterday while addressing a meeting in Basirhat area of North 24 Parganas.

The comments of Abhishek, who heads the youth wing of Trinamool Congress, has attracted severe criticism from the other political parties.

"The comments are the reflection of the DNA of Trinamool Congress. This is what is expected of TMC and its leaders," BJP national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh said.

CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty said the proactive statements of Abhishek shows the mindset of Trinamool.

"I am not surprised by the statement. This is their ideology and mindset. Several TMC leaders had earlier spelt it out. Now Abhishek has said it," Chakraborty said.