Mamata warns of protests outside BJP leaders’ homes over TMC office ‘vandalism’
Former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday condemned the alleged vandalism at the Trinamool Congress office on Camac Street and warned that her party would stage demonstrations outside the residences of BJP leaders in New Delhi if such “atrocities” continued.
Addressing the issue during a Facebook Live, Banerjee accused BJP-backed men of vandalising the party office, looting documents and equipment and doing so with the alleged knowledge of Kolkata Police.
“We condemn the vandalism at our party office early in the morning in Kolkata. If this is the law and order situation in Kolkata, just imagine what is prevailing in rural areas,” she said.
“BJP goons looted our documents and equipment and vandalised our office by taking Kolkata Police in confidence,” Banerjee alleged.
She accused the BJP of promoting “total lawlessness” in West Bengal and also condemned what she described as hooliganism at Jadavpur University.
“What happened at Jadavpur University was the hooliganism of the BJP. We condemn this,” she said.
Banerjee also alleged that attempts were being made to restrict her movement, claiming that the chief minister had said she would not be allowed to leave her home.
She warned that the TMC would respond if attacks on its leaders and offices continued.
“If these atrocities on the TMC don't stop, we will stage dharnas outside BJP leaders' homes in New Delhi,” Banerjee said.
Her remarks came hours after TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee alleged that BJP-backed armed men vandalised the party's Camac Street office in the early hours of Thursday.
Abhishek Banerjee shared purported CCTV footage showing several masked and helmeted men leaving the premises with electronic equipment, including television sets and a printer. Another clip showed damaged furniture and electronic equipment inside a room.
The footage could not be independently verified.
Police subsequently arrested six people in connection with the incident, an officer said.
The allegations have triggered a fresh confrontation between the TMC and BJP, with both parties trading accusations over law and order and political violence in West Bengal.
