Several people sustained injuries in fresh clashes that rocked already-troubled Bhatpara area in North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal on Saturday.
Section 144, which had already been enforced, was violated by the rival groups and the police lathi-charged them to clear the area and take control of the situation.
"The situation is totally under control. Police are patrolling the area. As Section 144 is imposed here, police have chased away those who gathered here. We have registered cases and investigation is underway, " Manoj Verma, Barrackpore, Police Commissioner said.
The incident occurred moments after a three-member BJP central delegation left the area after their scheduled visit.
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As the delegation left, two groups, one led by the BJP and other by TMC, engaged in a pitched battle as both sides hurled country-made bombs and stones at each other.
Several persons were injured in the incident.
Bhatpara had witnessed clashes between rival groups suspected to be affiliated to TMC and BJP on Thursday in which two persons had died.
Earlier in the day, a three-member BJP delegation reached the violence-hit district, where clashes claimed two lives and left at least four people injured on Thursday.
The delegation, comprising MPs S.S. Ahluwalia, Vishnu Dayal Ram and Satyapal Singh, reached Bhatpara from Delhi on Saturday morning. In the village, it visited the houses of the two deceased in Thursday's clash. Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh also accompanied them.
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While Ahluwalia is an MP from the state, Singh and Ram are former police officers besides being MP from Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand respectively.
"The police shot them. They had held a press conference and said that they resorted to aerial firing. But if they did that, how did it enter the bodies of people? It's unfortunate. Families of small vendors were finished," ANI quoted Singh as saying.
"A 17-year-old boy was shot when he going to purchase something. Police shot him in his head from point blank range. A vendor was shot and died on spot. A third is in the hospital. Seven people were shot. Police use batons for hooligans and bullets for innocents. It should be inquired," he added.
(With inputs from PTI, ANI)
