At least 15 CPI(M) workers were injured and six arrested after a confrontation between party workers and police erupted in the Jadavpur area of South Kolkata on Sunday night, 8 June, during a protest against a hawker eviction drive near Jadavpur Station. The clash has triggered a political storm, with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) accusing police of a merciless baton charge and demanding the release of detained leaders.

How the clash unfolded

The eviction drive began late Sunday night, with bulldozers demolishing several illegal shops and constructions adjacent to Jadavpur Station. A joint protest by the CPI(M)-led Left Front and Congress had been under way since Sunday evening to block the drive. A large contingent of police and Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) personnel was deployed at the site, with barricades erected along the perimeter.

The situation turned violent when party workers and police came into direct confrontation, resulting in injuries on the CPI(M) side and the arrest of six individuals. Among those injured and subsequently hospitalised was Srijan Bhattacharya, general secretary of the Student's Federation of India (SFI), the CPI(M)'s student wing, who required a CT scan at a local private hospital in Jadavpur. Sujan Chakraborty, a central committee member of the CPI(M), was also present at the spot and was similarly affected.

What party leaders said

A senior CPI(M) leader told reporters that police had resorted to a baton charge without restraint. While being escorted into a police vehicle, Bhattacharya alleged that the railways were acting in defiance of a court order. 'They have come to evict hawkers ignoring the court's order. I was forcibly and illegally arrested. Many people, including theatre activist Joyraj Bhattacharya, were injured during the police action,' he said.

Another CPI(M) leader condemned what was described as a 'bulldozer drive by the new government,' adding: 'All the shops adjacent to Jadavpur station have been demolished. Railways have given 15 days' notice to the remaining ones. We strongly condemn this.'

CPI(M) targets Trinamool Congress silence

The CPI(M) also trained its fire on the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), questioning why the party — which holds 80 legislators in the state assembly — had remained silent on the hawker evictions since the new Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government assumed power in West Bengal. 'Trinamool Congress has 80 legislators. We have only one. But it is our leaders and party workers who are resisting the hawkers' eviction drives at the spot since the beginning. Trinamool Congress has surrendered,' the CPI(M) leader said.

Monday protests and demands

On Monday, 9 June, SFI members staged demonstrations outside the Jadavpur University campus, demanding the immediate release of all those arrested in connection with Sunday night's events. The protests reflect a broader escalation of tensions around hawker rights in the city, as the railway administration continues its drive to clear encroachments around suburban stations. How the BJP government and railway authorities respond to the court-order allegation raised by Bhattacharya will be closely watched in the days ahead.