Kolkata Billboard Row: 14 Trinamool Activists Arrested So Far

Kolkata Police have arrested another Trinamool Congress activist in connection with the confrontation over the removal of an illegal billboard from the roof of Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee’s residence on Camac Street. The arrested activist has been identified as Toufik, taking the total number of arrests in the case to 14.

According to a city police officer, Toufik allegedly played a leading role in obstructing Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) officials and police personnel during the billboard removal operation on Thursday afternoon. He was arrested by officers of the Anti-Rowdy Squad (ARS) of the Kolkata Police’s Detective Department and subsequently handed over to personnel of the Shakespeare Sarani Police Station.

The latest arrest comes after 13 people arrested earlier in the case were produced before a lower court in Kolkata on Friday. The court rejected their bail pleas and remanded them to judicial custody until September 3. Three FIRs have been registered at Shakespeare Sarani Police Station in connection with the incident, based on complaints filed by police personnel and the KMC.

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The dispute began when KMC officials, accompanied by Kolkata Police personnel, reached the Camac Street premises on Thursday to remove the billboard. Abhishek Banerjee and other Trinamool Congress leaders and supporters reportedly opposed the action, with Banerjee questioning the validity of the municipal order. He reportedly objected that the billboard image had not been attached to the original notice, following which KMC officials returned with a revised order.

When the officials returned, police cordoned off the area as the civic team proceeded towards the building’s roof. According to the police account, some Trinamool supporters, including women activists, attempted to block the staircase by forming a human chain. A scuffle subsequently broke out between police personnel and party supporters before officers cleared the way for the KMC team.

Two of the three FIRs registered in connection with the incident reportedly named Abhishek Banerjee, Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member Derek O’Brien and party leaders including Humayun Kabir and Baishwanar Chatterjee, among others. The third FIR was filed on the basis of a complaint by the KMC. Police are continuing their investigation into the confrontation and the circumstances surrounding the alleged obstruction of the civic and police teams.

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