Kolkata: Mukundapur erupts in TMC-BJP clash, former IPS officer injured

Mukundapur descended into chaos on Tuesday as a dispute over a Trinamool Congress (TMC) party office turned into a violent confrontation involving Trinamool and BJP supporters. Several people were injured, vehicles were damaged and the streets became the scene of a bitter political clash.

The most disturbing images were those of former IPS officer and former Mamata AITC MLA Humayun Kabir, who appeared in a video with blood running down his face and his eye visibly swollen. Kabir accused BJP workers of attacking him in front of the police.

He said, “BJP miscreants attacked us right in front of the police. They beat me up, causing injuries to my face and eye, and tore my clothes.”

Trinamool also alleged that its leader Upasana Chowdhury was attacked. Derek O'Brien said in a post on X that “BJP miscreants attacked Upasana's home as well”. Chowdhury herself alleged that BJP leaders and workers had threatened the group during the confrontation.

She said, “Right in front of the police, BJP leaders and workers were threatening to tear us apart. We repeatedly pleaded with the police with folded hands to do their job.” 

These are serious allegations, although the BJP has denied responsibility for the violence. BJP state spokesperson Saptarshi Chowdhury described the incident as an internal Trinamool dispute, claiming that “one faction of the party has received everything, while the other has received nothing” and that they had fought among themselves.

The BJP's version, however, does not remove the wider questions surrounding the violence. If the confrontation was simply an internal Trinamool dispute, as the BJP claims, the presence of rival political workers, the injuries suffered by several people and the subsequent police investigation require careful examination. 

BJP's Jadavpur mandal president Sajal Ray offered another version of events. “They were blocking the entire road. That is when some of their own people came and beat up that youth president,” he said. 

The police have arrested two people, Sridip Das and Pritam Pandey, in connection with the incident. Authorities are examining video footage and eyewitness accounts, while further arrests remain possible if evidence establishes the involvement of others.  

The dispute reportedly began over control of a Trinamool party office in Mukundapur. Trinamool supporters organised a procession demanding that the office be recovered, while BJP workers and supporters were present in the area. What began as a verbal confrontation allegedly escalated into a physical clash, with allegations of stone and brick throwing and damage to a vehicle.

The political rhetoric intensified afterwards. Trinamool leader Kunal Ghosh described the situation as “horrific” and said “many young men and women were beaten and their dress were torn”. TMC MP Mahua Moitra questioned, “What is happening in the state?”

At the same time, BJP MLA Sharbari Mukherjee rejected the allegation that her party was responsible. She claimed that “ordinary people are putting up resistance” and alleged that there was an attempt to create unrest in Jadavpur.