Kolkata, August 28, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Kolkata Police have arrested 13 Trinamool Congress activists and registered three FIRs in connection with a confrontation over the removal of an allegedly illegal billboard from the roof of Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee’s premises on Camac Street.
The dispute began on Thursday afternoon and continued into the night, prompting police to initiate legal action under several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including non-bailable sections.
All three cases were registered at Shakespeare Sarani Police Station. One was based on a complaint by an officer of the station, another on a complaint from a police officer attached to nearby Park Street Police Station, while the third followed a complaint filed by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC).
The FIRs based on complaints from Shakespeare Sarani Police and the KMC name Abhishek Banerjee, Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien, party leaders Humayun Kabir and Baishwanar Chatterjee, among others. The case registered on the Park Street Police officer’s complaint has been filed against unidentified persons.
According to Kolkata Police, the KMC had sought police assistance in writing to remove an illegal hoarding at 9 Camac Street. Police personnel from Shakespeare Sarani Police Station subsequently reached the location with municipal officials.
Police alleged that supporters, including some of those named in the FIRs, gathered at the site and prevented the KMC officials and police from entering the premises and obstructed the execution of the civic body’s order.
The police also alleged that officers and municipal workers were assaulted during the confrontation and that a woman police officer on duty was beaten and subjected to attempts to outrage her modesty. Protesters were also accused of abusing and threatening police personnel.
The confrontation intensified after Abhishek Banerjee, O’Brien and their associates questioned the validity of the KMC order. Banerjee reportedly argued that the notice was invalid because a photograph of the billboard was not attached to the order.
KMC officials subsequently returned with a revised order, following which police cordoned off the area. The civic officials then proceeded to the building’s roof to remove the billboard.
According to police, Banerjee’s supporters attempted to stop them by forming human chains on the staircase, with some Trinamool women activists also participating. A scuffle subsequently broke out between police personnel and party supporters.
Police eventually cleared the staircase, allowing KMC officials to reach the roof, dismantle the billboard and remove it.
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