LIVE: BJP workers clash with police while trying to enforce West Bengal shutdown, many leaders held

BJP workers clashed with the police at several places across West Bengal on Wednesday as they tried to enforce a 12-hour shutdown, which had a mixed impact in the state. Several BJP leaders, including former MPs Roopa Ganguly and Locket Chatterjee, Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya and MLA Agnimitra Paul, were detained for blocking roads since the morning. The 'Bangla Bandh', which began at 6 am, was called by the BJP in protest against Tuesday's police action on participants of 'Nabanna Abhijan' or march to the secretariat, organised by the newly formed students' group Chatra Samaj over the rape and murder of the doctor at RG Kar hospital.

The shutdown partially affected daily life in the state with many people choosing to remain indoors apprehending trouble on the roads. In state capital Kolkata, the usual weekday flurry was missing with a smaller number of buses, auto-rickshaws and taxis plying. Private vehicles were also significantly less, even as markets and shops remained open. Schools and colleges were open, though the number of students was fewer. Many English-medium schools in Kolkata suspended classes. In many private offices, attendance was low with employees asked to work from home. However, attendance was as usual in government offices. Several BJP leaders were detained across the state for attempting to enforce the shutdown. Ganguly and Paul were detained from south Kolkata's Gariahat area when they were urging traders to down their shutters and requesting people to support the bandh.

Chatterjee was detained from Shyambazar when she was leading a demonstration, while Bhattacharya was detained from Wipro More in Salt Lake Sector 5. Kolkata's Ward 50 councillor Sajal Ghosh was detained from his residence in Sealdah shortly after BJP workers scuffled with TMC supporters while trying to enforce the bandh in the nearby Koley Market. His wife Tania Ghosh then took out a rally, alleging that police held him without any warrant.

Later, Deputy Commissioner (Central) Indira Mukherjee said Ghosh was arrested for making provocative comments. State BJP president Sukanta Majumdar, a Union minister, led a procession at Baguihati in the northern fringes of the city but had an altercation with the police who tried to stop him. Former MP Debasree Choudhury and hundreds of party workers accompanied him. Following the demonstration, Majumdar went to central Kolkata and blocked the CR Avenue outside the state BJP headquarters along with his supporters. He had heated arguments with senior police officers who swung into action to clear the arterial road.

At Alipurduar, BJP MP Manoj Tigga was arrested for allegedly enforcing the bandh. An official of the Eastern Railway said bandh supporters blocked tracks at 49 places under its jurisdiction in the state. While the blockades were lifted at most places, it was continuing in nine stations, mostly in the Sealdah South section, he said. BJP workers demonstrated at the Bongaon station in North 24 Parganas, Gocharan station in South 24 Parganas, and the Murshidabad station in support of the bandh. Tension was palpable at the Barrackpore station in North 24 Parganas as BJP supporters and TMC workers came face to face. At Bhatpara in North 24 Parganas district, BJP alleged that two of its workers were shot at.

Police, however, claimed that the two men were beaten up by some people outside Anglo India Jute Mill. The injured persons were initially taken to the Bhatpara State General Hospital, but were later shifted to a hospital in Kolkata for better treatment, they said. Former BJP MP Arjun Singh and Jagaddal's TMC MLA Somnath Shyam along with their supporters reached the area after the incident, triggering tensions. Police intervened and brought the situation under control.

"Miscreants owing allegiance to the Trinamool Congress fired the shots, if police are not around we will show TMC the people's power," Singh said. Shyam countered by saying that the BJP leader was trying to incite violence in the area. Picketing by BJP supporters on the roads led to the disruption of public transport services in Cooch Behar, Alipurduar, Siliguri and Malda in northern West Bengal, and in Purulia, Bankura and some other places in the southern part of the state.

Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari led a protest march in Nandigram in Purba Medinipur, his home district. In Malda, activists of the TMC and BJP engaged in a brawl over the blocking of a road. Police intervened to disperse the two groups.

Large-scale violence on the streets of Kolkata and adjacent Howrah marred the cries for justice for the RG Kr hospital victim on Tuesday afternoon after protestors, aiming to reach the West Bengal state secretariat, Nabanna, fought pitched battles with the police at multiple stoppage points. The violence, which lasted for nearly four hours, led to several injuries on both sides with senior police officers and women protestors among those who were hurt. More than 200 people were arrested from across the state, police said.

Protestors took to incessant pelting of stones and glass bottles on the police at several spots where their progress was stopped. Fifteen personnel of the Kolkata Police and 14 from the state police force were injured in the clashes, police said. Police resorted to large-scale lathi-charge, unleashed water cannons and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the aggressive crowd who poured in from multiple converging points at Nabanna. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari alleged that over 160 protestors, including 17 women, suffered injuries in the police action.

Condemning the police action on protestors, president of BJP’s Bengal unit Sukanta Majumdar called a 12-hour Bangla bandh on Wednesday. State’s Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari urged Governor CV Ananda Bose to “impose President’s Rule” in the state. The ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ call was given by an unregistered student body 'Paschim Banga Chhatra Samaj' and a dissident state government employees' platform 'Sangrami Joutha Mancha' who demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the alleged rape-murder of a medic at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. The West Bengal government urged people not to respond to BJP’s 6am–6pm general strike.

“The government will not allow any bandh on Wednesday. We urge people not to participate in it. All steps shall be taken to ensure that normal life is unaffected,” said Alapan Bandopadhyay, the chief advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Shortly afterwards, the state issued a notification stating that all government offices would remain open and all employees, except those facing exigencies or are on leave, would have to report for duty on August 28 or face show-cause for their unauthorised absence. The top brass of Bengal police cited multiple judgments of various high courts which termed bandhs called by political parties “illegal”. Stating that “there would be no bandh in Bengal tomorrow”, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh claimed the call for the general strike was given because the chaos on the streets unmasked the BJP and exposed its conspiracy to create political conspiracy in the state.

ADG (South Bengal) Supratim Sarkar confirmed that 25 people were arrested from across the state on Monday night prior to the secretariat rally as a preventive measure. “We have credible proof that these miscreants were planning to use firearms and bombs in the rally. The situation could have turned much worse if these preventive arrests were not made,” Sarkar said.

According to Kolkata Police sources, 126 members and supporters of Paschim Banga Chhatra Samaj were arrested on Tuesday. Thirty-three out of them were women. Both police and the government brass maintained that the security forces “exercised extreme restraint and did not fall prey to the provocations from the agitators”. “The police limited themselves in taking only those actions that were necessary in the wake of the aggressions displayed by the protestors,” ADG (Law and Order) Manoj Verma told reporters at Nabanna. “Why are we being beaten up by the police? We did not break any law. We are holding a peaceful rally to demand justice for the deceased doctor. The chief minister should take responsibility and resign,” said a woman protester.

Later in the day, police again used teargas and resorted to lathi-charge to disperse BJP leaders and supporters when they marched towards Kolkata Police headquarters at Lalbazar demanding the release of students arrested during the Nabanna Abhijan rally.

The police action began after BJP supporters attempted to breach police barricades to enter Lalbazar. Several party leaders, including state president Sukanta Majumdar, fell ill during the commotion and scuffle and were removed from the spot by the police.

The state BJP made a helpline number available for those requiring medical and legal assistance in the aftermath of Tuesday’s police action on protestors. Pitched battles between the police and protestors were fought at Hastings, Mahatma Gandhi Road and the Strand Road entry point to the Howrah Bridge in Kolkata as well as on Foreshore Road, Howrah Maidan, Kona Expressway and at the Santragachhi station complex in Howrah.

Multiple police vehicles were vandalised and a police two wheeler was torched by the agitators near the Babughat river front. A section of protestors even managed to reach within stone’s throw distance of Nabanna breaching police barricades en route and stood face to face with armed police chanting slogans for justice. Police allegedly used force to disperse the gathering. “The police foiled their plot to get a body. That is why the BJP called a strike tomorrow to cripple Bengal’s booming economy ahead of the Durga Puja festival,” senior minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said.

The West Bengal government on Tuesday urged people not to participate in BJP’s 12-hour general strike on August 28, asserting that the administration will ensure normal life is not affected due to the bandh. The BJP has called for a 6 am-to-6 pm general strike in West Bengal to protest against the police action on those who took part in the march to state secretariat ‘Nabbana’ on Tuesday.

"The government will not allow any bandh on Wednesday. We urge people not to participate in it. All steps shall be taken to ensure that normal life is unaffected," said Alapan Bandopadhyay, the chief advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

He said transport services will remain operational, and shops, marketplaces and other business establishments have been asked to remain open.

Bandopadhyay also urged state government employees to attend office.

The police used batons, tear gas and water cannons to disperse protesters attempting to reach ‘Nabanna’ to demand the resignation of the CM over the rape-murder of a doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

Clashes broke out between police and protesters at different parts of Kolkata and its neighbouring Howrah on Tuesday, as the agitators tried to make their way through barricades to march towards the West Bengal secretariat. The protesters were attempting to reach ‘Nabanna’ to demand the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the rape-murder of a doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital here.

Clashes were reported at MG Road, Hastings Road and areas near the Princep Ghat alongside Santragachi and Howrah Maidan in which some protesters as well as policemen were injured. Police lathicharged and used water cannons and tear gas to disperse protesters who threw stones and bricks at the security forces, and attempted to topple barricades blocking their way to the state secretariat.

"Why were we beaten by police? We did not break any law. We are holding a peaceful rally to demand justice for the deceased doctor. The chief minister should take responsibility and resign," said a woman protester. Police said they had to take action after the agitators breached barricades at some locations and “attacked” security personnel.

"We are used to tackling such unruly mobs and our officers have handled the situation well. We have detained several people and the law will take its course," a senior police officer of Kolkata Police said.

Earlier in the day, police lathicharged and used water cannons and tear gas to drive away the agitators at Howrah Bridge's Kolkata end and near the Santragachhi Railway station on Kona Expressway, as they tried to march on. At Santragachhi, the agitators threw bricks at police, injuring some officers, even as protesters claimed that the police action caused injury to students. Trouble escalated when the student organisation 'Paschim Banga Chhatra Samaj' and the dissident state government employees' platform 'Sangrami Joutha Mancha' began their 'Nabanna Abhijan' rally from various points.