Mamata camp, BJP workers clash in Kolkata over control of local party office
Supporters of the Mamata Banerjee faction of the Trinamool Congress and the BJP clashed in Kolkata's Mukundapur area on Tuesday, with both sides accusing each other of starting the violence. The TMC alleged that several of its workers and leaders were assaulted and that some women workers were molested, while the BJP rejected the allegations as false.
Police said the confrontation broke out over control of a local party office and that they had to resort to a baton charge to disperse the crowd. Several TMC workers were reportedly hospitalised after the clashes, and both parties later held demonstrations outside the Purba Jadavpur police station.
Tensions rose after local TMC workers aligned with the Mamata Banerjee faction took out a rally demanding that a party office, which they said had earlier belonged to the Trinamool Congress and was now being "forcefully occupied" by the BJP, be freed. The marchers were on their way to submit a memorandum at the local police station.
The TMC alleged that soon after the rally began, intoxicated BJP workers attacked its supporters, leading to scuffles. The party also alleged that eggs were thrown at Upasana Chowdhury and other women workers.
TMC spokesperson and the Mamata Banerjee group's IT cell head Upasana Chowdhury alleged that BJP workers besieged her residence in the area, molested her and beat her with sticks. She also claimed that BJP activists hurled eggs at her, attacked her family when they tried to protect her, and smashed the front and rear windshields of her car.
"We had gone to submit a memorandum, carrying the Constitution in our hands. But BJP-backed miscreants vandalised my car and attacked my home," Chowdhury said.
Former MLA and ex-IPS officer Humayun Kabir alleged that BJP workers brutally assaulted him when he was trying to reach the local police station, where several party leaders were being held immediately after the clashes. In a video on Facebook, Kabir was seen wounded, with blood on his face and his shirt torn. He claimed he recorded the footage from inside the police station and alleged that he was attacked in front of the police. Kabir also said the attackers snatched his belongings, including the money he had, and smashed his glasses.
According to eyewitnesses, police intervened after the situation worsened and tried to bring it under control. TMC MP Derek O'Brien, condemning the incident, alleged on social media that the police remained inactive during the assault. "Four disturbing pictures tell the truth. This Tuesday evening in Calcutta. Proof of the brutalities unleashed on our party colleagues by intoxicated BJP thugs. Our IT cell head Upasana beaten/molested. Former MLA/senior police officer Humayun was wounded. Where is the police?" O'Brien wrote on X.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra also posted on X, "What's going on in Bengal? Humayun Kabir, IPS ex-MLA, ex-minister, was brutally attacked by BJP goons at the gate of Purba Jadavpur PS with 50 policemen watching. He is currently a hostage inside the PS, bleeding while goons try to break open the gates of the PS."
The BJP denied all the allegations and said TMC workers had attacked its supporters without provocation. A local BJP leader alleged that one of the party's workers was filming the TMC programme, which angered Trinamool workers, who then confronted and attacked him, leading to the clash.
Jadavpur BJP MLA Sarbori Mukherjee said the scuffle reflected "ordinary people resisting the TMC's attempt to re-establish goonda raj in the area". "The Trinamool is purposely trying to create unrest in the area by pushing in anti-social elements who have been long rejected by the people," she said.
The clash in Mukundapur led to hospitalisation of several TMC workers, police intervention and competing allegations from both parties, with the TMC accusing BJP workers of assault and molestation and the BJP blaming Trinamool supporters for triggering the violence.- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Sep 23, 2026 15:05 IST
