TMC workers allegedly beat up students of the famous Visva Bharti university on Friday while they were protesting against a deforestation initiative of the Public Works Department (PWD). These trees were supposedly being cut to aid the widening of a road in Shyambati area of West Bengal’s Bolpur town. This town also houses the university.
The assaulted students include women and two foreign students hailing from Poland and Canada. The Canadian student Lavrenty Repin had to be hospitalised as a result of the attack. The whole assault allegedly took place in front of the cops who failed to intervene in the matter.
Reports claim that after learning about the student protest, TMC’s local leader Nurul Huda Kaji and his associates reached the spot and started indiscriminately thrashing the students, to try and remove them from the spot. It has also been alleged that the TMC workers molested women during their attack.
The videos of the attack which have since then emerged have shown the students and supposed TMC workers having heated exchanges in front of the police. These workers allegedly threatened to extol revenge and later proceeded to beat the students up to try and end the protest.
Soon after the attack, students were rushed to nearby hospitals for treatment, following which, a heavy police force removed the TMC workers and other activists from the spot. The whole protest by the students though turned out to be moot, as the cutting of trees resumed after everyone was disbursed from the spot.
As a result of this attack, a case was filed by the students against three TMC leaders including Kazi Nurul Hoda who is the president of the party’s Ruppur anchal committee.
This incident caught the attention of social media users who reacted with anger and shock:
There won’t be any outrage over #TMC violence in #WestBengal . Our so-called Intellectuals and pioneers of #FakeOutrage are behind any kind of polarisation in India. https://t.co/aNebfutxyf
— Sagar Speaks (@sagar13d) March 10, 2018
Wah @MamataOfficial wah… Time for @AITCofficial @derekobrienmp to be thrown out from WB..But where are the protests and candle light march ?? https://t.co/F9Bket9gr9
— Arnold Roy (@ArnoldRoy007) March 10, 2018
@MamataOfficial goondas r filling the shoe of Red terrorists. TALIBANI rule in West Bengal. Soft corner for jihadi, Bangladeshi and Rohingya but beat those who protect environment. #JihadiMamta https://t.co/Yek9UQQ1jo
— RAVI वन्दे मातरम् (@1810RAVI) March 10, 2018
The police seem to have acted in the matter and as per reports, five supposed TMC workers were arrested on Saturday morning. As per Station House Officer of Santiniketan police station, five people have been arrested in connection with the matter and cases of sexual harassment have been lodged against them.
