Amtala TMC office demolished illegally, will move HC, says Abhishek Banerjee

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday asserted that the party’s Amtala office, which was demolished by the local administration, was built legally on purchased land and after clearing all permissions.

Alleging that the administration acted in collusion with the ruling BJP, he also said that the TMC would move the Calcutta High Court against the demolition of the party office.

The South 24 Parganas district administration on Saturday demolished the party office of the TMC MP at Amtala after it was found to be constructed allegedly without an approved building plan and in violation of applicable rules, a senior official said.

Banerjee told reporters that the action was politically motivated and warned that if there was a change in the Government after the 2031 Assembly elections, the BJP’s party offices in the state would also meet the same fate.

“A party office is like a temple to us. If someone has constructed a party office illegally, the authorities should certainly take action. But this is not Government land. The land was purchased, and the building was constructed according to an approved plan. It has all the valid permissions and documents. We will place all these documents before the Calcutta High Court,” Banerjee said.

He also said that the party wrote to the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to the Chief Justice of India, enclosing videos which he claimed showed BJP workers vandalising the premises during the demolition of the party office.

“We will apply for an urgent hearing on this matter in the High Court. We will also move the Supreme Court,” the Diamond Harbour MP said.

Those who were seen in the videos would not escape legal action, he said.

“If you think BJP leaders will shield you, then I will tell you that you will be proved wrong. The hand of the law is long enough to catch them,” Banerjee said.

“Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. If I remain alive, I promise to give you back all this with interest after the 2031 elections, using the same law,” the TMC leader said.

Alleging that the BJP was using the administration to target TMC workers, he claimed that the TMC has secured bail for around 1,000 party workers in the last two months.

Taking a swipe at the BJP, Banerjee said, “Before the election, it was ‘Annapurthe na Bhandar’ scheme, and it is ‘Bulldozer model’ now. This is the true model of the BJP.”

“You (BJP) are trying to show your power by using bulldozers. Remember, this will not be able to weaken the TMC; on the contrary, we will gain more strength,” he said.