‘Bengal is not a bulldozer state’: Calcutta High Court tells West Bengal government after Mamata flags post-poll violence

Kolkata/New Delhi: The Calcutta High Court on Thursday directed the West Bengal government to “strictly maintain law and order at the ground level” in the wake of Trinamool Congress’s allegations of widespread post-poll violence in the state.

The court also directed the police to ensure the safety of absconders who fled their homes, apprehending post-poll retribution violence, and arrange for their safe return to their properties, irrespective of party affiliations.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen passed the interim order following the hearing of a writ petition filed by Sirsanya Bandyopadhyay, alleging widespread violence against workers and attacks on TMC party offices following the declaration of the 2026 assembly poll results on May 4.

Bandyopadhyay is a party candidate in the recently concluded polls and the son of MP Kalyan Banerjee.

The bench directed the state to file its affidavit-in-opposition within three weeks and has granted a window of an additional two weeks to file an exception to it, while keeping the question of maintainability of the TMC’s PIL open.

The order was passed after TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee told the court that police remained passive during post-poll violence, asserting that “Bengal is not a bulldozer state” amid ongoing demolition drives against illegal structures.

The former chief minister, who appeared for the first time before the high court, sought urgent judicial intervention to protect the people of the state from the attackers.

Banerjee donned a lawyer's robe to assist the petitioner’s counsel Kalyan Banerjee who argued that “total lawlessness” currently prevailed in the state.

This was Mamata Banerjee’s second appearance as a lawyer before a court in recent times and the first since her party’s electoral debacle in Bengal in the hands of the BJP. Her previous showing was in February when she had personally appeared before the Supreme Court and made submissions in a petition filed by her challenging West Bengal's SIR process.

Banerjee’s court appearance prompted the Bar Council of India (BCI) to ask the West Bengal Bar Council to furnish a detailed report within 48 hours regarding her enrolment and professional practice status.

In a letter, the BCI directed the secretary of the state bar council to furnish complete records relating to Banerjee’s enrolment as an advocate, if any, and her practice status during and after her tenure as chief minister from 2011 to 2026.

Meanwhile in court, the TMC chief submitted that at least 10 people have been killed, some 150-160 TMC party offices vandalised and around 2000 instances of violence recorded in the state in the aftermath of the election results.

“Out of ten dead, six are Hindus. They are not allowing FIRs to be lodged. In my family, 12-year-old girls are being threatened with rape,” Banerjee submitted.

She also claimed that attacks have been orchestrated on fish markets and meat shops.

Banerjee referred to pictures submitted to the court and said that women, children and members of the minority community have been specifically targeted, while party offices have been “looted and captured in front of the police”.

“People are entitled to be heard even if you are demolishing an unauthorised structure. Criminals are taking law into their own hands. Police should prevent crime. After an incident has happened, will they not investigate?” she argued.

Seeking an interim order to ensure peaceful return of those forced to abscond due to post poll violence, Kalyan Banerjee urged the court to send the matter for adjudication before the five-judge bench which continues to hear cases related to violence post-2021 state polls.

In its order, the court said it will consider the five-judge bench appeal after it has heard the exchange of pleadings of the parties concerned in the case.

The TMC Lok Sabha MP referred to the post-poll bulldozer action in central Kolkata’s 400-year-old heritage Hogg (New) Market, stating “justice by bulldozer is unknown to jurisprudence”.

“We are living in West Bengal, not Uttar Pradesh,” Kalyan said.

Following a state government order, bulldozers from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation are currently in action to demolish a set of buildings in Tiljala area of Kolkata, which housed an illegal leather manufacturing unit where a fire killed two people and injured three others on May 12.

Appearing for the state government, advocate Dhiraj Trivedi, while arguing that the PIL is not maintainable, submitted that the list of alleged post-poll violence incidents was “vague” and lacked details about the victims or the perpetrators.

The government will have to inquire into each of these cases separately and determine whether they fall into the ‘post-poll violence’ category, he said.

Chaotic scenes were witnessed at the high court while Mamata Banerjee was leaving the premises after the hearing, with a large number of lawyers shouting “thief” slogans at the ex-CM.

Kalyan Banerjee alleged that a section of lawyers under the influence of the BJP heckled and abused the TMC supremo, and the party’s legal team had a tough time safely escorting her out.

“The court is not a place to publicly brand someone as a thief or a dacoit. We can also say similar things about opposition party leaders... If lawyers can’t have protection inside court premises, imagine what’s happening currently with the ordinary workers of the TMC across Bengal,” he said.

The TMC later hailed the court order, calling it a “victory” for the party, with the BJP standing exposed.

BJP state president Samik Bhattacharya, however, called Mamata Banerjee’s allegations “baseless”, claiming that while three BJP workers have died in the hands of Trinamool-sheltered goons since the poll results were declared, the rest of the deaths were “results of TMC infighting”.