Rashbehari-to-college campus rally takes up entire road flank
Times of India | 3 July 2025
Kolkata: Hundreds of BJP supporters on Wednesday afternoon marched down a 3-km route from Rashbehari crossing to the law college where a first-year student was gang-raped a week ago. The rally took place after the organisers — Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the youth wing of BJP – obtained permission from the Calcutta High Court to protest against the sexual assault.
Considering the commuters' woes, the HC had asked the police to ensure that the breadth of rallies must be restricted to a third of the road. However, one flank of the Rashbehari connector was shut completely on Wednesday, which paralysed traffic movement on the stretch for close to two hour.
BJYM state president Indranil Khan told TOI: "Despite the HC's green signal, cops were not allowing our party workers to put up a stage on the opposite flank of the college. After talking to the police, we decided that our rally would pass on one flank of the road while the other flank would remain open for traffic movement.
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The protest march began around 3.10 pm, and it took nearly an hour for the protestors to reach the mancha where opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari addressed the public. Adhikari said: "The rally evinced our strong protest against the rape of a law student by a student union leader and his accomplices. We demand justice for this heinous crime, and our fight against this injustice will not stop.
" The BJP leader, while demanding CM Mamata Banerjee's resignation, also mentioned that there would be a march to Nabanna next week and that he would request RG Kar rape victim Abhaya's parents to join the rally. According to Adhikari, BJP will organize North Bengal Abhiyan on July 21 — the day Trinamool is scheduled to observe Martyrs' Day. While Adhikari said the number of protestors was around 3,000, Trinamool claimed the turnout was not more than 750. While the protests ended at 5 pm, the ripple effect lingered for another hour. Several commuters, office-goers, including school students, were caught in snarls. Sutapa Majhi, a resident of Baguiati who was stuck in a bus, said: "I want the rape accused to be punished. But I am doubtful how effective such rallies will be.
"Sayak Deb, a student, was spotted walking home as no vehicle was moving. "I boarded a bus but had to get down as it was stuck," said the boy. Suman Saha, a trader at Gariahat market, rued: "Since traffic movement was disrupted due to the rally, customers stayed away.