West Bengal BJP leader Joy Banerjee on Friday urged people to shun Chinese products and warned that those who continue to do so "should be beaten up and their homes ransacked".
There has been a growing clamour in the country for a boycott of China-made products since the killing of 20 Indian Army personnel during a violent face-off with Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley on June 15.
"China should be taught a lesson. And this should start by boycotting Chinese goods. All of us should boycott everything that is Chinese. Those who are still using it should refrain from doing so. Otherwise their legs should be broken and houses should be ransacked immediately," Banerjee said.
His comment drew sharp reactions from Trinamool Congress leaders who asked him to first clarify his party's stand on China.
"All of us are with the government in this hour of crisis. But the BJP instead of giving such sermons should first reply how China managed to enter our territory. If people have to boycott Chinese goods, they will do it on their own. Who has given the BJP the right to give such sermons?" a senior TMC leader said.
Rajesh Orang of Birbhum district and Bipul Roy of Alipurduar were among the 20 Army personnel killed in the fierce clash with the Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley, the biggest military confrontation in over five decades that has significantly escalated the already volatile border standoff in the region.