Sukanta, doctor who asked question during CM's lecture ‘detained'
STATE BJP president Sukanta Majumdar and a London-based doctor, Rajatshubhra Bandyopadhyay, were both detained by the city police amid a roadside conversation in south Kolkata's Bhabanipur area on Friday.
Although they were both released around three hours later, the incident led to protests by BJP workers and a political firestorm.
The BJP claimed that around 25 of its workers were also arrested and released nearly hours later.
The drama unfolded as Majumdar, who is also a Union minister of state, arrived in Bhabanipur on a motorcycle to observe 'Paschimbanga Dibas' (West Bengal Day), defying police restrictions. After garlanding a statue of Syama Prasad Mookerjee, he went to meet Bandyopadhyay at his residence on Harish Mukherjee Road.
Police intercepted Majumdar's convoy, initially claiming that the doctor was not present at home. However, a video later released by the BJP on social media purportedly showed Bandyopadhyay at his residence, prompting protests from party supporters. They accused the police of misleading them and alleged that the state government was 'weaponising the police' to stifle political expression.
Amid the standoff, Bandyopadhyay stepped out of the premises of his home to meet Majumdar on the street. The doctor recently garnered attention for publicly questioning Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during her lecture in London, a video of which had been widely shared online. Their conversation was cut short and both Majumdar and Bandyopadhyay were escorted into police vehicles and taken to the city police headquarters at Lalbazar.
'For what reason have we been detained? I have no clue,' Majumdar told mediapersons as he was led into the van.
'Even a visit to a doctor's house has now become a crime?' a BJP worker questioned.
The ruling Trinamool Congress defended the police's actions. 'The BJP is creating provocations. The doctor in question has a track record of inciting controversy. The police acted in accordance with the law to maintain peace in a sensitive locality,' said TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh.
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