TMC Terms Proposed ‘Nabanna Rally’ ‘Illegal’, Oppn Says Party Panicking Due To Spontaneous Protests

TMC has termed proposed ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally on Tuesday as "illegal and an attempt to incite widespread unrest in Kolkata". The rally has been called by a student outfit called Chhatra Samaj, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the rape-murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Senior West Bengal Minister and TMC leader Chandrima Bhattacharya has claimed the rally has been called without police permission and suggested it was part of a plan by some elements to disrupt peace and stability in the state, PTI reported.

Bhattacharjee, who was joined by TMC leaders Kunal Ghosh and Joyprakash Majumdar, emphasised that the investigation into the rape-murder of the doctor has been transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and dismissed the call for the CM’s resignation as politically motivated, the report added.

"The call for this rally has been given on social media by Chhatra Samaj, which has not intimated police about their plans. We all want justice for the victim and exemplary punishment for the perpetrators. The case has been handed over to the CBI and the demand for the resignation of the CM is politically motivated," she was quoted as saying.

Ghosh questioned the rationale behind the rally’s decision to march to Nabanna, the state secretariat, instead of the CBI office where the probe is underway.

Ghosh presented videos purportedly showing two persons advocating for violence to ensure the rally's success, which he linked to right-wing groups and some leftists, including the CPI(M), report mentioned.

"What these people - mostly right-wing forces like RSS and ABVP as well as some leftists backed by CPIM - really want is clear from these videos. They want deaths. We have information that people from outside the state are also being brought to foment unrest during the rally. We have also learnt some people in the rally will be wearing police uniforms and fire on people to shift the blame on the police," he said as per the report.

Meanwhile, in reaction, BJP Rajya Sabha MP and state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya denied any involvement of the party in the rally, asserting that if any members of the saffron party attend, it would be in their individual capacity, the report mentioned.

CPI(M) leader Satarup Basu criticised the TMC’s claims as an expression of fear and desperation, it mentioned.

Basu accused the TMC of panicking due to rising spontaneous protests and asserted that the CPI(M) supports peaceful, democratic protests against the ruling party’s alleged misrule.