Kolkata: Congress workers clash with cops during rally to counter BJP protest on Rafale; 26 held

Earlier in the day, Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) supporters took out the rally from Moulali to Bidhan Bhawan in Central Kolkata and raised slogans against the Congress. They even burnt effigies of Rahul as a mark of protest.
Later in the afternoon, the Congress supporters too burnt Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s effigy.

According to police sources, they only intervened when the Congress supporters tried to move close to the BJP office. The Congress supporters also blocked road at Central Avenue and some protesters even threw eggs and ink on police officers. Later, police arrested 26 Congress workers from the spot.

Following the incident, state Congress president Somen Mitra said, “Such politics of targeting party headquarters never happened in Bengal. They barged into the Bidhan Bhawan and tried to ransack it. Such culture never existed.”

Meanwhile, the BJP claimed that their protest against Congress was a scheduled programme. BJP state secretary Sayantan Basu said, “Our protest was announced before. But Congress workers came near our party headquarters and I have heard that they also threw something towards the party office. This is unwarranted.”