West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee appeared to slap a Trinamool Congress (TMC) worker during a party protest march in Kolkata on Wednesday, according to a video that has been widely circulated on social media.
The footage purportedly shows a party worker attempting to manage the crowd and create space for Banerjee as she made her way through the gathering. Moments later, the TMC supremo appears to lose her temper and slap the worker.
The video was shared on X by BJP MP Raju Bista, who criticised Banerjee over the incident.
“Mamata Banerjee slapped a man during a TMC protest. The man was trying to control the crowd and make way for Mamata. But Mamata lost her cool and slapped her own party worker," Bista wrote in a post on X.
Banerjee was leading a protest march from Ballygunge Phari to Hazra More over the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in Baruipur.
During the march, eggs were thrown at the procession as it moved from Ballygunge Phari to Hazra More in Kolkata.
The protest also witnessed clashes between BJP workers and members of the TMC youth wing, prompting police to resort to a baton charge to bring the situation under control.
The demonstration, organised by the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC's youth wing after obtaining permission from the Calcutta High Court, faced repeated disruptions from BJP supporters. According to reports, BJP workers raised “thief" slogans and attempted to block the march by forming human barricades along Hazra Road.
As the procession advanced from Ballygunge Phari in south Kolkata, workers from both parties were seen exchanging blows before security personnel intervened and dispersed the groups with a baton charge.
Reacting to the violence, Banerjee accused the BJP of orchestrating a “planned rampage" during the protest. She alleged that BJP workers attacked both men and women while claiming that “the city police standing by as mute spectators".
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