‘They announced it through press conference’: Sukanta Majumdar questions Police decision to term students ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally ‘illegal’

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], August 26 (ANI): Union Minister and West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar on Monday questioned the West Bengal police decision to term the ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally ‘illegal’, stating that the students had announced it through a press conference, indicating police awareness of the event.

Majumdar told ANI “Tomorrow West Bengal students are going to protest in a peaceful democratic way, what is the point of obstructing that? Students have announced it through a press conference, which means you (police) know about it… BJP’s stand is clear, this is not BJP’s movement but we support it…This is a students’ movement, it is a non-political movement, we are with the students.”

Reportedly, West Bengal ‘Chhatra Samaj’ have planned a ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally seeking Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s resignation over the Kolkata rape and murder incident.

West Bengal ADG Police (Law & Order) Manoj Kumar Verma called the ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally scheduled for August 27 to reach the Nabanna or State Secretariat illegal and an attempt to incite widespread unrest in Kolkata.

He also added that no organisation has applied to hold a protest near Nabanna.

Verma said, “Nabanna is a restricted area. If any programme is organised here then the organisers should put a request to the police officials and the police will decide after considering the case. So far, no organisation has applied to hold a protest near Nabanna. This is a restricted zone and if anyone needs to organise a protest then they first need to apply for permission from the police…We have very specific inputs that some miscreants might try to create a situation of unrest there (near Nabanna).”

He said that police had already directed that many areas have been allowed in Kolkata to conduct peaceful protests over what happened at RG Kar Medical College but Nabanna is a restricted area.

“Here Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (formerly Section 144 of the CrPC) is in place. But no information has been given. This is illegal. SC had allowed peaceful protests but the court has not injuncted the state from exercising such lawful powers as entrusted in terms of law,” he added.

The brutal rape and murder of a woman trainee doctor on the R G Kar Medical College and Hospital premises sparked outrage all over the country. The incident shook the entire nation, and since then several protests have been staged demanding justice for the victim.

Earlier, CBI officials conducted a polygraph test on the arrested accused, Sanjay Roy, in connection with the rape and murder of a female trainee doctor in Kolkata.

On August 25, Parimal Dey, a teacher from Alipurduar in West Bengal who was honoured with the Banga Ratna award by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in 2019, has decided to return the award in protest against the state government’s handling of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape-murder incident.

The trainee doctor was found dead in the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9.