Tapas Paul hospitalised, opposition says excuse to skip parliament

Kolkata, July 7 (IANS) Drawing all-round flak for his rape-and-violence remarks, Trinamool Congress MP Tapas Paul has now been admitted to a south Kolkata nursing home for "high blood pressure".

However, West Bengal's opposition parties claimed it is only an excuse to stay away from parliament, outside which the Left women's organisations Monday staged a demonstration against the actor-turned-MP.

Paul was admitted to the nursing home at 8 p.m. Sunday after he complained of a sudden increase in blood pressure. He also had high fever.

"Besides, he is a chronic back pain patient," said a hospital official.

Now he was stable.

But the Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Bharatiya Janata Party smelled a rat.

"I wish him speedy recovery. But I am sure that without chief minister (Mamata Banerjee's) order, he would not have got admitted. It is to ensure he does not have to go to Delhi and attend parliament," said Leader of Opposition Surjya Kanta Mishra of the Communist Party of India-Marxist.

State BJP president Rahul Sinha spoke on similar lines.

"The Trinamool Congress has asked him not to go to parliament. They feel if he attends parliament, the protests will increase. So they asked him to fall ill, and skip parliament for a few days," Sinha said.

"But then why only for a few days, the chief minister should ensure that he stays away from parliament for life."

Meanwhile, members of the women's organisations of the Left parties staged a noisy demonstration outside parliament demanding Paul's expulsion from the Lok Sabha.

Carrying placards that read "Suspend Tapas Paul from parliament", "No to politics of rape", the angry protestors raised slogans against Paul till police came and removed them.

Paul, an MP from Bengal's Krishnanagar, has been caught on tape exhorting his party workers to kill CPI-M activists even as he himself asserted that he would gun down his rivals and let loose his "boys" to rape their women.

Notwithstanding the countrywide clamour for Paul's arrest and expulsion from parliament, the Trinamool has sought to end the matter with an apology which he tendered to his party and the media Tuesday last.