KOLKATA: A scuffle broke out between BJP workers protesting against the gang-rape incident at a city law college and the police on Saturday afternoon at Gariahat intersection in South Kolkata. The saffron party was demonstrating under the leadership of their West Bengal State President and Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar.
The BJP alleged that the police arrested a few of their workers and took them in a prison van. Majumdar was also taken in a prison van. As a result, there was a severe traffic jam in Gariahat. Commuters faced problems while returning from office and school on Saturday afternoon.
A student was allegedly gang raped in the South Calcutta Law College at Kasba on Wednesday. Four persons have been arrested so far. According to police sources, Manojit Mishra (31), a former student of the college, is the prime accused in the incident.
Alleging that Mishra is associated with the Trinamool Congress, on Saturday afternoon, the BJP workers took to the streets to protest. A huge police force was already deployed at Gariahat intersection. They allegedly prevented BJP workers from moving forward by putting up barricades there. Some BJP workers allegedly tried to break the barricades to move forward towards the Gariahat police station. Then, Majumdar and other BJP leaders were seen involved in a heated exchange of words with the Police. Thereafter, Majumdar and a few others were taken to a prison van by the police.
Majumdar said, “We did not go to break the police station. We were protesting. The police stopped us.”
Pointing his finger at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and his nephew Abhishek Banerjee, National General Secretary of Trinamool Congress Majumdar said, “A young girl was raped. No one is safe in West Bengal, except she and her nephew.”
BJP also organised protest demonstrations in various parts of Kolkata and West Bengal. Congress and Left parties also took to the streets on Saturday to protest the gang-rape incident.
Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress alleged Somnath Sahoo, BJP's Yuva Morcha leader from Habibpur, who was caught red-handed stealing jewellery worth Rs 25 lakh from a shop in Odisha, was close to Majumdar.
In a post on X, sharing pictures of Sahoo with Majumdar and BJP MLA Hiranmoy Chatterjee, Trinamool leader Kunal Ghosh said, “What link does the BJP State President have with a thief? Has he got some share? Clarify please. Whether these are facts or not. CCTV footage exposes him. Locals caught him while he was trying to flee and handed him over to the police. Shamelessly, @BJP4Bengal leaders, including @DrSukanataBJP and @hiran_chatterji, have been seen posing with this thief on multiple occasions.”
“The party that claims to be the guardian of law and order is busy sheltering criminals!” he added.
Later, addressing a press conference, Ghosh said, “BJP's fact-finding team, when they come to Bengal, must visit and meet the victim who has been raped and assaulted by Kartik Maharaj. Kartik Maharaj is getting encouragement to involve in such act from top BJP leaders.”