Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee survived a knife attack made at her by a woman in front of her residence in Kolkata’s Kalighat area on Tuesday, October 13, evening, according to leaders of her faction of Trinamool Congress.
With leaders of Banerjee’s faction of the party targeting the state’s BJP government and accusing it of negligence in the security of a former CM, state industries minister Tapas Roy retorted, asking if Banerjee has forgotten the security situation during her rule.
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Banerjee was not injured in the attack that took place around 6PM. When the 71-year-old former CM was on her way back home from the inauguration of a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata, a woman named Tanishtha Saha made an attempt to attack her with a knife in front of her residence, said Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member and the party’s joint general secretary Dola Sen.
In an email complaint she sent to the officer-in-charge of Kalighat police station, Sen said Tanishtha Saha, the assailant, was a drug addict and that she introduced herself as Banerjee’s niece while attempting to attack her with a knife. Saha was arrested.
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Sen wrote that Saha was “reportedly known as civic volunteer and a drug addict”. Saha also allegedly hurled abusive language at Banerjee as she “in an intoxicated manner tried to violently approach” the former CM. Saha lay down on the road to hurt Banerjee, wrote Sen in her complaint email.
Mamata Banerjee, pro-Kalighat leader Vaishwanar Chatterjee and Dola Sen were returning from Kalighat Milan Sangh puja pandal when the attempt to attack took place. Tanishtha Saha held a knife in her hand and addressed Banerjee as “Pisi”, said Sen.
“It is concerning that someone like the attacker could approach in the gates of the residence of a Z-plus category security protectee raising questions in the larger conspiracy,” wrote Dola Sen in her email complaint to police.
According to Ananda Bazar Patrika, Dola Sen immediately brought the attack attempt to the attention of two police personnel present nearby. She said that the two cops said they could do nothing because they belonged to the state police and that the incident took place in an area under Kolkata Police Commissionerate jurisdiction.
Former Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale also took to social media to complain about the incident. “A drug addict reached Mamata Banerjee’s residence today and tried to attack her with a knife. This is the condition in Bengal where even a Z+ protectee & 3-time CM is not safe. Was this a planned conspiracy by BJP because Didi is determined to finish them off in Delhi? A complaint has been filed. Will the police act or was this sanctioned by Amit Shah?” wrote Gokhale on X.
“Chief Minister Subhendu Adhikari is quite aware of the security of the former Chief Minister of the state,” said state industries minister Tapas Roy, adding that CM Subhendu Adhikari will surely take action on the matter.
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“In the last 15 years, has she (Mamata) been able to provide security to the mothers and sisters of the state, the common people, the business community? Now she is whining. She has forgotten her own time?” asked Roy.
