New Delhi [India], April 3 (ANI): Congress Member of Parliament Pramod Tiwari on Friday condemned the recent violence in West Bengal's Malda, stating that democratic elections must remain free from any form of intimidation or fear.

Speaking to ANI, Tiwari accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of 'misusing' the Election Commission and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

'In a democracy, elections should be fair, without any fear or intimidation. In Bengal, the BJP is misusing the entire Election Commission and the SIR to the fullest extent possible, whereas the truth is that the Election Commission is behaving as if it were the BJP's front wing. Committing violence against any election-related official, intimidating or threatening them, taking them hostage is condemnable from every perspective,' he said.

Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has started a probe by registering a 'preliminary enquiry' into Malda violence case in which thousands of people on Wednesday blocked the two gates of the Kaliachowk-2 Block Development Office (BDO), holding staff including seven judicial officers 'hostage' for hours before they were rescued after midnight.

The anti-terror agency initiated the preliminary enquiry late on Thursday after the Election Commission of India (ECI) formally referred the matter, sending a letter to its Director General.

The ECI's direction to the NIA came following the Supreme Court's order issued on Thursday, asking the poll panel that 'a central agency, either CBI or NIA' probe the incident, pointing out the attack 'deliberate and calculated' attempt to demoralise the judicial officers and obstruct them from discharging their duty.

The apex court had also mentioned specifically that it cannot be tolerated, and also directed the ECI to seek deployment of central forces for the protection of the officers and their families in the state.

An NIA team is expected to reach Malda at any time today. While the agency has remained tight-lipped, sources indicated that an NIA team had already departed early Thursday from its Kolkata office for the spot.

Upon arrival, the team is likely to first visit the jurisdictional police station to gather all available details related to the incident from the police, which is currently handling the case and has arrested 20 people linked to the incident so far, including Mothabari Indian Secular Front (ISF) candidate Maulana Shahjahan Ali and alleged mastermind Advocate Mofakkarul Islam.

The standoff was triggered by mass deletions from the electoral rolls under the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process. The incident was part of a broader wave of protests that paralysed Malda throughout the day, as demonstrators staged road blockades across national and state highways and key rural routes in at least five Assembly constituencies. (ANI)