Kolkata Police have arrested six people in connection with the alleged vandalism at TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee’s office on Camac Street. The arrests were made on the basis of a complaint sent by Banerjee to the police via email following the incident.
The six accused have been identified as Avinash Kumar Show (40), Sukdeb Gupta (27), Suraj Show (25), Bhambol Mondal (22), Sankar Rao (28) and Rohit Porel (30). All six are residents of Howrah and were arrested in connection with the alleged vandalism.
Banerjee had alleged that BJP workers entered the office and carried out the attack ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections.
The incident reportedly took place around 4:30 am, when a group of masked men allegedly entered the office, damaged equipment and removed electronic items. The footage purportedly shows several men inside the office and carrying away items, including monitors and other electronic equipment. Banerjee also questioned the police response, alleging that officers failed to reach the premises despite repeated calls and emails.
Banerjee, who was in New Delhi at the time, shared CCTV footage of the incident on his X handle and alleged that BJP workers were behind the attack, calling for action against those responsible.
“This is what the BJP has done to my party office in the early hours of this morning.” He continued: “What happened at Camac Street this morning is a disgraceful assault on the rule of law. At around 4.30 am, BJP hooligans, armed with weapons, stormed our party office in the heart of Kolkata. They attacked our people, snatched their phones, smashed furniture, ransacked the premises and destroyed electronic equipment. And where was Kolkata Police? For nearly TWO HOURS, despite repeated calls and emails from our people and lawyers, there was no response. This is outrageous and unacceptable,” he wrote.
He further questioned the response of ruling government in the state and centre. He asked whether the West Bengal Governor, Union Home Minister or Prime Minister’s Office ‘would act’, then appealing the Calcutta High Court to intervene to ‘uphold the rule of law.’
The TMC MP from Diamond Harbour constituency also took a snip at Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari claiming that the top BJP leader in the state is ‘scared of the Trinamool Congress.’ He questioned, “Why are you so scared of the Trinamool Congress and of me that you have to resort to this kind of intimidation? If this is how the Opposition is to be treated in West Bengal, through violence, vandalism and intimidation, then the Chief Minister have no moral authority to remain in office. He must resign. This is not democracy. This is political thuggery.”
