Kolkata ‘Nabanna March’: R.G. Kar protests take political turn, become turf war between BJP and Trinamool

Protests for justice in West Bengal turn political, leading to clashes and a 12-hour bandh called by BJP.

Eighteen days after the rape and murder of a doctor at the R. G. Kar Medical College and Hospital, the protests for justice took a political turn with violence during the ‘March to Nabanna’ on Tuesday following which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called a 12-hour bandh in the State on Wednesday. 

Doctors and social activists, who have been hitting the streets demanding justice, said they feel “cheated” as the protest has become a turf war between the Opposition BJP and the ruling Trinamool Congress. 

Kolkata Nabanna March: Follow LIVE updates on August 27, 2024

On Tuesday, as the protesters started walking towards Nabanna, the State Secretariat, following a call given by the Paschimbanga Chhatro Samaj, they were stopped by the police in the twin cities of Kolkata and Howrah. As protesters from the Paschimbanga Chhatro Samaj clashed with the police and breached barricades to reach Nabanna, situated in Howrah just across the Hooghly river, police fired tear gas shells and used water cannons to keep the mob at bay. Many protesters threw stones at the police personnel in retaliation.

“It is very upsetting in the sense that where was all this police when we needed them? I think we have managed to keep the movement apolitical, even after this (Tuesday’s march). People are looking up to us, it’s hard to maintain this but let’s see,” Hassan Mushtaq, a protesting doctor the R.G. Kar hospital, told The Hindu.

During the build-up to the march, the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front (WBJDF) put out an official statement on Monday (August 26) and distanced themselves from it. “We have heard about the August 27 rally from media outlets. We, the people of WBJDF, want to clarify that this rally is not organised or called by us. We are not participating in this rally in any form.” 

Within hours of the clashes between the protesters and police, the State BJP shared a post on its X handle writing, “Mamata Banerjee, do you think deploying your police force can silence West Bengal’s students? Thousands are marching to Nabanna demanding justice, yet you use police to harass peaceful protestors. Where was this police force when rapes and brutal crimes were happening?”