TMC Party Office, Illegal Clock Towers Bulldozed, Mamata Banerjee Donned Advocate’s Robe, Bar Council Seeks Legal Status
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, May 14: A day after the West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari warned that his government would have a “zero-tolerance policy” towards illegal structures and corruption in unlawful factories, bulldozers razed a Trinamool Congress party office and a clock tower, both claimed to be illegal structures, on Thursday.
The party office was bulldozed down after an allegedly illegal tannery was brought down in Kolkata’s Tiljala area following a fire in the building in which two persons were killed and three sustained burn injuries.
A Kolkata Municipal Corporation team demolished a green clock tower in south Kolkata’s Garia area. Locals had reportedly complained about the structure being illegal, but authorities did not take action even after a court had issued an order to demolish it in 2025.
The clock tower was inaugurated by former Trinamool MLA and Minister Aroop Biswas. He lost his Tollygunge seat in the Assembly elections to his BJP rival Papiya Adhikari. “They built the clock tower inside our playground. Aroop Biswas’ men threatened our club members when we protested against it,” a local resident said.
Several clock towers had come up in parts of Kolkata in the past few years during the Trinamool’s rule in the State. Some also resembled the iconic Big Ben of London. In a separate incident in North 24 Parganas’ Naihati area, an illegal Trinamool party office was razed. Authorities said the party office was constructed on land belonging to the Railways.
On Wednesday, Mr Adhikari had said his government would not tolerate illegal constructions and unlawful factories. “We have asked the electricity supplier to permanently stop the power supply and directed CESC [the distributor] to immediately disconnect the power to illegal factories in the Tiljala, Kasba, and Mominpur areas. We have told them to do an immediate audit to see who does not have sanctioned building plans. Power supply to such buildings must be stopped immediately,” he had said.
As per his instructions, the corporation is preparing a list of illegal factories in Kolkata, and it will be handed over to CESC and the civic body’s water department on Thursday. Bulldozers were deployed in the State just days after the BJP stormed to power. A Trinamool party office and other structures were razed in Kolkata’s New Market area a day after the victory on May 5.
Meanwhile, the former chief minister and the Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Thursday appeared before the Calcutta High Court in a lawyer’s gown to argue a case linked to alleged post-election violence in the state. She arrived at the court along with senior TMC leaders Chandrima Bhattacharya and Kalyan Banerjee.
The matter relates to a public interest litigation filed on behalf of the TMC by advocate Shirshanya Bandyopadhyay. The petition alleges that party offices were attacked and several TMC workers faced violence after the announcement of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly election results.
According to the petition, many party leaders and workers were allegedly assaulted due to their association with the Trinamool Congress. It also claimed that several workers were forced to leave their homes in the aftermath of the elections.
The plea was submitted before the Calcutta High Court on May 12 and came up for hearing before a division bench headed by Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Parthasarathi Sen. Tension was reported inside the court premises after the hearing ended. As Mamata Banerjee was leaving the High Court, a section of lawyers allegedly raised slogans calling her a “thief.” The situation briefly turned chaotic as TMC leaders and lawyers tried to escort her safely out of the premises.
Reacting to the incident, Kalyan Banerjee accused lawyers linked to the BJP of attempting to heckle the former chief minister. He further alleged that if such treatment could be meted out to a former chief minister, ordinary TMC workers across Bengal were facing even greater hostility.
The development brought the Bar Council of India to write to the Bar Council of West Bengal seeking records related to Mamata Banerjee’s enrolment and legal practice status after reports of her appearance in advocate’s robes at the Calcutta High Court.
The Bar Council of India has asked for details regarding her enrolment as an advocate, any suspension or resumption of practice, and information about her certificate of practice. The state bar council has been asked to provide the records within two days.
