Police use tear gas, water cannons to stop march to Bengal secretariat
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was at her secretariat office when the agitators broke through police barricades and started throwing stones at security personnel
Police used tear gas and water cannons on Tuesday to stop hundreds of people marching to the state secretariat Nabanna demanding West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s resignation over the rape and murder of a doctor and alleged failure to ensure the safety of women.
Banerjee was at her secretariat office when the agitators broke through police barricades and started throwing stones at the security personnel. “We deployed a few hundred personnel and anti-riot vehicles because intelligence reports indicated that some miscreants might attack policemen,” a police officer said. “Barricades were set up on the Kona Expressway, Howrah Bridge, and every road and lane around Nabanna as a precautionary measure.”
Police first used water cannons on the Howrah Bridge around 1 pm to disperse a crowd that tried to break through the barricade there. The agitators started throwing stones at police at Santragachhi around 1.20 pm, prompting the police to lob tear gas shells.
A policeman was beaten up with sticks at Howrah Maidan. Another policeperson suffered head injuries amid stone-throwing at Santragachhi.
Police superintendent Praveen Tripathi said they have not been able to find out how many police personnel were injured. “We are requesting the agitators to clear the national highway.” Police used batons to disperse a mob that broke through steel barricades at Burrabazar.
The protesters started arriving in small groups from Kolkata and Howrah around 12.30 pm although the government on Monday denied permission for the march calling it illegal. Police claimed the Paschim Banga Chhatra Samaj, the march organiser, is linked to a political party without naming it.
Chhatra Samaj leader Sayan Lahiri claimed on Monday the protests were not linked to any party but admitted being a BJP member. “I never denied that I am in the BJP,” he said.
BJP leaders including former Lok Sabha member Arjun Singh joined the march on Tuesday saying he came as an individual. “We will go as far as possible,” said Singh. BJP state chief Sukanta Majumdar also supported the march
On Monday, additional director general of police Supratim Sarkar said Chhatra Samaj, which calls itself a student’s organisation, called the march on the day the University Grants Commission was due to hold an examination. “We are denying them permission as thousands of students appearing for the exam will face problems if roads are blocked. Agitations cannot be held around Nabanna because it is a protected area.”
Sarkar said a Chhatra Samaj convenor, who regularly appears in the media, was seen entering the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kolkata on Sunday to secretly meet a leader of a political party. “We have videos as evidence. People are free to meet each other but it is a strange coincidence that these people met secretly at a hotel 48 hours before the agitation,” Sarkar said
The ruling Trinamool Congress has said the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the student wing of BJP’s ideological found Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, organised the march.
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