Nabanna Abhijan: Chaos engulfed various parts of Kolkata on Tuesday as protestors demanding the resignation of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the alleged rape and murder of a female trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital clashed with the police en route to the state secretariat, Nabanna.

The protest march, "Nabanna Abhijan", was organised by a student body called the Paschim Banga Chatra Samaj. During the rally, the police were seen resorting to lathi-charge and using water cannons at several places to disperse the protestors. Tear gas shells were also lobbed by the police as protestors at multiple places tried to break through the barricades. Stone pelting was also reported.

NABANNA ABHIJAN RALLY: KEY HIGHLIGHTS

- The West Bengal unit of BJP has called a 12-hour statewide general strike (bandh) on Wednesday to protest the police action on the Nabanna-bound protestors.

- Following calls of 'bandh' by the BJP, the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government said it would ensure public life remained unaffected across the state. "The government will not allow any bandh on Wednesday. We urge people not to participate in it. All steps shall be taken to ensure that normal life is unaffected," Alapan Bandopadhyay, the chief advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was quoted as saying  by news agency PTI.

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- TMC MP Mahua Moitra described the protestors as "goons", adding they forced the police to react. "No - bodies have not fallen. Sorry BJP & GodiMedia to disappoint your ghoulish desires. This is not a common citizen's march. Students? Women? Barely. A bunch of goons throwing bricks at police & goading them to react," she said in an X post.

- In the wake of the police action on the protestors, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose slammed the state's TMC government, saying, "I would say disproportionate force and coercive power were used by the state in dealing with the situation, ignoring the Supreme Court's pronouncements that state power shall not be unleashed against peaceful protesters. This is the ghastly sight that we saw today on the streets of Kolkata. Certainly, this cannot be appreciated in any manner."

- The TMC, on the other hand, accused the opposition BJP of having "orchestrated extreme chaos and disrupted the law and order of the state".

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- Clashes were reported in several areas of Kolkata and the adjoining district of Howrah, where Nabanna is located. Some of the areas that witnessed clashes between protestors and the police were Santragachi, Kazipara, Howrah Maidan, and Foreshore Road.

- More than 200 people were arrested from across the state, the police informed.

- Union Minister and the president of BJP's West Bengal unit, Sukanta Majumdar, led a protest by BJP leaders and workers outside the Kolkata Police Headquarters in the Lal Bazar area. The protesting crowd demanded the release of multiple students associated with 'Nabanna Abhijan'.

- Police used teargas and resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the protestors. The police action began after some BJP supporters attempted to break police barricades to enter Lal Bazaar, PTI said in a report.

- Majumdar fell ill after being exposed to teargas. He, subsequently, left the scene.

(With inputs from agencies)


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