Kolkata, June 29 (UNI) After refusing release on a bail bond, West Bengal BJP President, and Union Minister of State Sukanta Majumdar along with several BJP state level leaders walked out of Lalbazar—the Kolkata Police headquarters—on Sunday morning, a day after being detained for allegedly leading a protest against the reported rape of a law student at South Kolkata Law College on Wednesday.
“Acting on the orders of a despotic Chief Minister, these subservient police forces had us arrested in a completely unlawful and undemocratic manner. All through last night, they repeatedly pressured us to sign bail bonds. We outright refused. We made it clear: we will not sign a single paper - if they have the courage, let them take us to court,” Majumdar told the media after getting out of the police headquarters.
“But shockingly, the same police that arrested us with such aggression turned around and insisted we leave the lock-up without signing anything! No paperwork, no bail. What exactly was the reason for our arrest?” he added.
“On what legal grounds were we forcibly arrested and dragged to Lalbazar? Yesterday afternoon, during the police crackdown, many of our Karyakartas were brutally assaulted and injured. Through the night, there was no proper arrangement for medical aid, not even clean drinking water. They had to fight for the bare minimum, even in custody,” Majudar asked after he walked out of Lalbazar at
6.30 am in the morning.
Majumdar was detained on Saturday evening after a BJP protest march led by the party’s union minister of state for North East was intercepted by police as it moved towards the college campus, prompting chaos when BJP workers clashed with the police and dismantled barricades despite a heavy security presence.
However, Majumdar refused to sign the bail bond and stayed in Lalbazar the whole night.
In an audio message from the police headquarters, the BJP state president said, “This month alone,
I have been dragged unlawfully to Lalbazar Central Lock-up multiple times. Today, once again,
I along with our several respected BJP leaders and Karyakartas have been forcibly arrested and thrown into a prison van wrongfully. I have already made it clear: I will not leave on personal bail.
I remain here at Lalbazar, standing firm with our fearless Karyakartas.”
“We demand an immediate end to this chaos. We strongly condemn the horrific violence and abuse being inflicted on women across Bengal. We will not let the dignity of our mothers and sisters be violated - that is our solemn vow,” he added.
However, Majumdar said that the BJP would continue its protest movement across the state throughout the day and escalate it further in the coming days.
“There will be torch rallies by BJP women across the state, and our workers and leaders will continue protests and gherao demonstrations in front of all police stations and SP offices throughout the day. If the police arrest us, we will refuse release on personal bail bonds and choose to remain in jail—we also want to see how much space they have in their prisons,” he added.
The political mercury in the state surged after a law student filed a complaint at Kasba police station, alleging that a former student and an employee of South Kolkata Law College—affiliated with the ruling Trinamool Congress—along with two other students, gang-raped her in the security guard’s room on the college premises.
In response, Kolkata Police formed a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Assistant Commissioner of Police Pradip Kumar Ghosal from the South Suburban Division to investigate the allegations. The police have arrested the three main accused—Manojit Mishra, Zaib Ahmed, and Pramit Mukhopadhyay—along with the guard, and remanded them to police custody until July 1.
UNI XC BM