Mamata breaks ranks to back Leftist lawyer, warns BJP against ‘jungle raj’

• Mamata Banerjee has backed Left-linked lawyer Shamim Ahmed after he was allegedly attacked in Salboni and pressured to withdraw his complaint.

• She said lawyers must be able to perform their professional duties without fear and warned against a culture of intimidation and ‘jungle raj’.

• Ahmed alleged that his group was attacked after visiting families seeking legal help to return to their homes; the BJP denied involvement.

Former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has broken her silence over the alleged attack on lawyer and newly elected West Bengal Bar Council member Shamim Ahmed in Salboni of Paschim Medinipur district, firmly backing the Left-linked lawyer and warning that political violence must not be allowed to threaten the rule of law.

In a strongly worded message on X, Banerjee condemned the assault and alleged that Ahmed was subsequently pressured to change his complaint. She said the lawyer and his colleagues were eventually able to return home only after the intervention of the chief justice of Calcutta High Court.

Her intervention is significant because Ahmed is associated with the Left, at a time when Banerjee has been signalling a willingness to work with Left parties against the BJP. But her message went beyond political calculations. She framed the incident as an attack on the ability of lawyers to represent ordinary citizens without fear. 'Every lawyer has the right to discharge their professional duties in a fear-free environment, irrespective of political identity or ideology,' she wrote.

Banerjee also referred to recent incidents involving lawyers at Bankshall Court and Baruipur Court and warned against what she described as a growing culture of intimidation. 'West Bengal will under no circumstances accept a culture of intimidation or "Jungle Raj",' she said, calling for 'the rule of law' to prevail 'rising above political violence'.

The incident took place on Saturday, 3 October, when Ahmed and a group of lawyers were returning from Salboni in the evening after visiting families who, according to Ahmed, had been forced to leave their homes because of longstanding political disputes. Their vehicle was allegedly attacked while they were returning. Claims have been made that bamboo poles, crowbars and sticks were used to damage the vehicles. Ahmed also alleged that a woman lawyer accompanying the group was molested.

For Ahmed, the incident is about far more than one assault. He described it as part of a larger constitutional struggle. “There is now a clear divide in the country — one group seeks to protect the Constitution, while the other favours its destruction. We will continue this fight alongside those who are striving to safeguard the Constitution,” he said. “Silencing lawyers amounts to an attack on ordinary citizens seeking justice.”

Explaining why he had gone to Salboni, Ahmed said, “Our goal is to bring back into the mainstream those who have long been unable to return to their homes. This attack was carried out precisely because of the fear surrounding that legal assistance.”

But he made it clear that the intimidation would not stop him. “This struggle cannot be halted through intimidation. The movement to uphold the Constitution, involving the common people, will continue everywhere — from the streets to the courts,” he said.

Senior Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury backed the demand for an impartial probe, saying, “The judiciary is one of the vital pillars of democracy, and lawyers are an integral part of the judicial system. If a lawyer is intimidated or harassed while standing by the common people or providing legal assistance, it becomes a matter of concern for the rule of law itself."