A woman allegedly tried to approach and attack former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with a knife near her residence in Kolkata’s Kalighat, the Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has alleged.
The incident allegedly occurred at around 6 pm as Banerjee was leaving to inaugurate a Durga Puja pandal. The woman is accused of running towards Banerjee while addressing her as “pishi”, meaning aunt in Bengali. She allegedly attempted to throw herself at Banerjee, later lay down on the road and shouted abuses.
According to the allegations, the woman tugged at Banerjee’s saree and was found carrying a knife concealed in her clothes. TMC workers caught her, pinned her to the ground and confronted her before handing her over to the Kalighat police. The woman allegedly remained defiant during the confrontation.
Rajya Sabha MP Dola Sen said the woman appeared to be under the influence of drugs and was carrying a knife. She also allegedly attempted to enter the crowd by claiming to be Mamata Banerjee’s niece.
The alleged security breach prompted questions from Banerjee’s aides about the arrangements in place for the former Chief Minister.
Protest over SIR exercise stopped at Rajabazar
Earlier, members of the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction held a demonstration in Kolkata’s Rajabazar area, seeking the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The protest followed Banerjee’s return from Delhi, where she had met Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi along with other INDIA bloc leaders amid the dispute over the SIR process.
The party’s student and youth wings had planned to march from Rajabazar to Park Circus. Police stopped the proposed march, citing the absence of permission. The protesters then continued their demonstration at Rajabazar, raising slogans against the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Chief Election Commissioner.
The TMC faction maintained that the police had been informed about the programme by email. Kolkata Police, however, said it had received no official intimation and maintained that written permission was necessary for the rally.
Beleghata MLA Kunal Ghosh said the march had been organised by the party’s student and youth wings and claimed that the police had been informed beforehand. He alleged that police and central forces had blocked roads since the morning and prevented party workers from reaching the protest site.
Ghosh said the workers were holding a peaceful protest against Gyanesh Kumar and alleged that the BJP was upset because the Chief Election Commissioner had carried out “vote chori” to benefit the party.
On Monday, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari said he had asked the Kolkata Police commissioner not to permit the rally during the Durga Puja celebrations. He also warned Mamata Banerjee against stepping out of her residence.
Adhikari said he had instructed the police commissioner to ensure that the rally did not proceed beyond Rajabazar and added that central forces could be deployed if required.
Reacting to his remarks, the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC faction questioned why Adhikari was “rattled” and criticised his statement that protest marches would not be allowed. The party asked whether threatening the deployment of central forces against peaceful protesters was consistent with democracy.
The party also described the political climate in West Bengal as disturbing, alleging authoritarian tendencies, an excessive use of power and disregard for the spirit of the Indian Constitution. It further called such statements a mockery of democracy and questioned whether they reflected the position of the BJP.
The proposed march remained restricted to Rajabazar after police prevented the demonstrators from proceeding towards Park Circus. The protesters continued to demand Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over the SIR exercise.
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