Excavator to raze CPM book stall near 8B bus stand at Jadavpur meets human chain

Holding aloft books and party flags, CPM supporters shouted “Go back” slogans, standing in front of an excavator that arrived to demolish the party's book stall centre near the 8B bus stand at Jadavpur late on Saturday evening.

Behind them, another group of CPM supporters formed a human chain around the book stall, which was inaugurated on October 13 by CPM veteran Biman Bose, and pledged they would not let it be razed.

“If the government wants to demolish our book stall, it will have to run the excavator over us first,” CPM state committee member and one of the key organisers of the Jadavpur book stall, Sudip Sengupta, told police officers and Kolkata Municipal Corporation officials who came for the demolition.

A joint team of police officers from Jadavpur police station and some KMC officials, accompanied by a central force contingent, arrived to demolish the CPM's book stall at Jadavpur.

The CPM stall is one of the four temporary structures set up near the Jadavpur 8B bus stand to sell books. An organisation claiming allegiance to the BJP has set up a stall for the first time. Book stalls of the rights group APDR and AISA are also there.

"No permission was taken from the Calcutta Police headquarters to set up the stall. There are permission issues. Traffic is getting affected at the key junction," a senior police officer said. "Party officials couldn't show an official order or clearance to set up the stall."

Refuting the charges, CPM leader Sujan Chakraborty said: “Long deliberations were held with the police before setting up the book stall. As we have done every year, we have intimated the police in writing. Police officers were present on the day of the inauguration. We have paid tax to the KMC to set up the stall and CESC duly installed a meter. Why weren’t we told about it earlier? This is not an isolated incident but part of the RSS-BJP attack on the Left. We have been resisting similar attacks, we will do it here too.”

Chakraborty asked a senior officer to show the demolition order. The officer could not. The officer requested that the stall be shut for the day and the issue be decided on Sunday.

Chakraborty refused to heed his request and asked party supporters to sing the national anthem. Till late in the night, cops remained deployed while CPM supporters guarded the stall and customers bought books.