Kolkata civic workers, accompanied by police and central security personnel, demolished a memorial outside Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee’s residence in Kalighat on Thursday after allegations that it occupied part of the footpath. The action followed the removal of a temporary bamboo shed and an iron gate from outside the property at 121, Kalighat Road.
The memorial was cleared at around 11am, according to Anandabazar – Kolkata. Workers first removed and folded the flags bearing the Trinamool Congress symbol from two iron poles. A bulldozer then broke up the cement structure, the poles and the surrounding iron railing.
The demolition came after municipal workers had removed a temporary shed from the footpath earlier in the day. The bamboo structure was dismantled and taken away after civic workers cleared the area. An iron gate outside the boundary wall was also cut and removed using a gas cutter on the ground that it obstructed the footpath.
The footpath had been the subject of dispute for several days. Residents had reportedly raised concerns that the temporary structure restricted pedestrian movement. The shed had also been used during a gathering connected with Banerjee’s birthday celebrations the previous Friday, when groups of people were seen assembled beneath it.
A spokesperson for Kalighat Trinamool, Arka Nag, said on Wednesday that the shed had originally been built by the police for personnel responsible for security when Banerjee had Z-plus protection. He said the additional security cover had later been withdrawn after a change in government, leaving the shed without a continuing purpose. According to Nag, arrangements were therefore being made on Banerjee’s behalf to remove it.
The structure had not been fully dismantled by Thursday morning. Municipal workers subsequently arrived and cleared the remaining temporary construction from the footpath. The removal of the gate and memorial followed as part of the same operation, with the authorities treating the structures as encroachments affecting the public walkway.
Banerjee criticised the action in a social-media post on Thursday morning. He said that even thousands of bulldozers would not silence his voice or weaken his resolve, and accused the BJP and the governments involved of acting against him. His remarks framed the operation as political retaliation rather than a civic enforcement measure.
Trinamool leader Baishwanar Chattopadhyay also criticised the demolition of the memorial, saying it was used to honour people who had died and alleging that the action reflected vindictiveness. These claims were political responses to the civic operation; the report separately identified footpath obstruction as the stated basis for removing the structures.
Police had visited the area on Wednesday evening amid the dispute. The Kalighat Trinamool unit said the visit was connected with removing the shed, while staff from Banerjee’s office had already begun taking it down. The municipal operation has now removed the reported obstructions from the footpath outside the residence.
