Kolkata: TMC, BJP supporters clash ahead of PM Modi’s rally

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Supporters of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) clashed in central Kolkata on Saturday shortly before Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a rally at the Brigade Parade Ground, leaving a police officer and a BJP leader injured, officials said.

The violence occurred around 5 km from the rally venue as BJP supporters were marching to attend the meeting marking the culmination of the party's "Parivartan Yatra" ahead of the Assembly elections. Eyewitnesses said supporters of both parties allegedly hurled stones at each other and raised slogans, triggering tension in the busy locality.

Police sources said Bowbazar police station officer-in-charge Bappaditya Naskar was injured while trying to control the situation.

West Bengal minister Shashi Panja alleged that stones were thrown at her residence in the Girish Park area during the clashes. "I was hit on the abdomen by bricks hurled from outside, and several of our supporters were injured. The attackers wanted to kill me," she said.

BJP leaders, however, claimed their supporters were attacked without provocation. "Stones were thrown at us while we were heading to the rally," a party activist told a Bengali news channel.

Police later deployed additional forces and dispersed the groups. Many shopkeepers in the area downed their shutters as tensions briefly escalated.

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