Nabanna chalo: BJP workers, cops clash in Kolkata, Howrah; two saffron party leaders injured

Several parts of the twin cities resembled battle zones, with police bursting teargas shells, drenching the agitators with gusting coloured water from fire engines and using batons to break up protest
Plumes of smoke rises from tyres set on fire by BJP activists during their march towards State Secretariat Nabanna to protest against 'worsening' law and order in the state in Howrah. (Photo | PTI)
Plumes of smoke rises from tyres set on fire by BJP activists during their march towards State Secretariat Nabanna to protest against 'worsening' law and order in the state in Howrah. (Photo | PTI)

KOLKATA: BJP’s protest march to the state secretariat in west Bengal took a violent turn after the protesters hurled bombs and stones at policemen who used water cannons, lathis and tear gas to disperse the party’s march in Kolkata and adjacent Howrah town. 

Several parts of the twin cities resembled battle zones, with police bursting teargas shells, drenching the agitators with gusting coloured water from fire engines and using batons to break up protests.

Several BJP workers and leaders were injured and also policemen as they clashed at several places, leaving on the streets broken barricades, smouldering discarded tyres, rocks and stones.

Over 100 BJP supporters were detained and action initiated against them for violating the National Disaster Management Act (NDMA), which bars gatherings and political rallies attended by more than 100 people due to the raging COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.

In Delhi, the BJP on Thursday came down heavily on the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government for using police actions against its workers. BJP national secretary Arvind Menon and Bengal unit’s vice-president Raju Banerjee were admitted with injuries to hospitals. 

While BJP chief JP Nadda said the saffron party has resolved to fight against Mamata’s “corrupt, violent and dictatorial” rule, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the TMC would not be able to stop the BJP’s march by using force and state machinery.

The BJP’s youth wing had organised the Nabanna Chalo (March to Nabanna) in protest against unemployment and corruption in TMC ranks.

BJYM chief and Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya led one of the rallies, which the BJP wanted to portray the event as a show of strength. 

Officials said the clashes erupted when the protesters tore down barricades. Police recovered a firearm a protester in Howrah.

“There were 4,000 police personnel deployed at strategic points and 99 BJP activists were arrested for today’s violence,’’ said a police officer. 

BJP’s state president Dilip Ghosh said the Trinamool government was scared of BJP’s increasing popularity and it kept Nabanna, the state secretariat, shut today.

Describing the police action as “killing of democracy in broad daylight”, he alleged the party workers were waylaid in the adjoining districts when they heading towards Kolkata.

In the evening, Bengal Chief Secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay said the government has enough evidence of violence at the protest march in Kolkata and Howrah.

“Many police personnel have been injured. We have seized one firearm. But still they tried to take control of the situation with patience. We have got enough evidence,” he told the media.

"It was also held in violation of the permissible parameters of the Pandemic Act," he also asserted.

He rejected the claim by some BJP leaders that the protesters were sprayed with chemical-laced water.

He insisted water cannons pumped out colours used during Holi so the trouble makers could be identified later.

"It is an international practice. Coloured water is used during such agitations so that people can be identified after they have been dispersed," he said.

West Bengal has been witnessing a series of political killings ahead of the assembly elections due in April-May next year, including those of BJP workers.

The gunning down of Manish Shukla, a close aide of BJP's Barrackpore MP Arjun Singh, on Saturday, was the immediate trigger for the protests.

Though the protest march to 'Nabanna', the state secretariat, was called by the Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the BJP's youth wing, top party leaders, including national general secretary and Bengal minder Kailash Vijayvargiya, national secretary Arvind Menon and state president Dilip Ghosh led the demontrations.

Tejaswi Surya, the sophisticated yet aggressive BJYM chief and Bengaluru South MP, was also present on the streets.

Instead of an integrated, single march, the saffron party had organised four in the twin cities where scores of barricades were erected by police to foil their attempts to reach the secretariat.

The authorities had declared the secretariat closed for two days from Thursday for "sanitization" and COVID-19 regulations were in place to thwart any attempt to amass BJP workers and supporters for the protest.

As thousands of these men and women began marching towards 'Nabanna', they were confronted by state police and anti-riot Rapid Action Force (RAF).

National television showed protesters tearing down the barricades, some jumping over them, as security personnel in anti-riot gear attempted to repulse them.

Water cannos, teargas, and batons were liberally used to disperse the rampaging crowds that hurled stones and brickbats at police.

In some place, police also fired rubber bullets to quell protests.

"The people of Bengal and the BJP will defeat her regime lock, stock and barrel. The BJP's struggle to save the rich glory of Bengal will continue," Nadda said.

In a series of tweets, he said, the BJP stands with the people of Bengal, despite the "brazen" misuse of state power.

"Our brave workers of BJP's Yuva Morcha compelled her to close the Secretariat. This is an admission that she has lost public confidence," Nadda said.

Thick plumes of smoke from discarded tyres that the protesters set on fire to block traffic blackened the sky and streets were littered with stones.

Shops and other business establishments hurriedly downed their shutters during the skirmishes.

For over three hours, police and protesters played cat and mouse on the streets of the two adjoining cities.

A BJP activist was arrested with a loaded pistol.

The BJP claimed he was the personal security officer of a party leader and was carrying a licensed handgun.

Surya demanded an inquiry by the Union Home Ministry into the alleged use of chemical-laced water on protesters, calling it a "gross violation of human rights".

Senior state party leader Raju Banerjee, MP Jyotirmoy Singh Mahato and national secretary Aravind Menon were among those injured.

Banerjee was shifted to a hospital.

BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and national vice-president Mukul Roy staged a sit-in at Hastings-Khidderpore crossing in Kolkata after they were prevented from marching further amid chaotic scenes.

"We were holding a peaceful march, but police action turned it into violent agitation. The police and TMC goons attacked us. It's all happening because of the dictatorial attitude of Mamata Banerjee," Vijayvargiya told reporters.

According to state BJP sources, the BJYM's "March to Nabanna" was part of its seven-point charter of demands ranging from alleged corruption to unemployment and law and order.

Chief Secretary Alapan Bandhopadhyay lauded police for having brought the situation under control with patience in the face of provocation.

"Today was a black day," lamented Surya, as he alleged the state government "murdered the rule of law".

Dilip Ghosh alleged "TMC goons" masqueraded as police and hurled bombs at BJP workers.

"The Pandemic Act comes into force only when BJP plans to conduct any rally or programme. When TMC conducts rallies and meetings, no rules are applicable," he said.

The TMC leadership accused the BJP of trying to unleash anarchy and communal riots.

"The BJP proved yet again it is an unruly party. Can you tell me where in a political rally activists are found carrying guns. They want to fuel communal riots in the state," state minister Firhad Hakim said.

(With PTI Inputs)

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com