Sporadic clashes disrupt normalcy in Bengal during strike
Times of India | 10 July 2025
Kolkata: Sporadic clashes between protesters and police disrupted normalcy in parts of Bengal on Wednesday as 10 central trade unions and their allies observed Bharat Bandh. Police arrested 383 bandh supporters across Bengal, including 41 from Kolkata.
A clash took place between bandh supporters and police at Ganguly Bagan in Kolkata in the morning, when CPM and SFI members set a tyre on fire. The fire spread to a police guardrail, causing panic among commuters, including schoolchildren. Nineteen protesters, including SFI general secretary Srijan Bhattacharya, were arrested on the spot.
At Jadavpur railway station, protesters tried to stall train movement on platform 1. There was also a scuffle between police and protesters at College Street. "The situation was under control and necessary precautions were taken to prevent any escalation," said a top officer at Lalbazar.
Bandh supporters tried to disrupt rail movement at Belgharia and Barrackpore on the Sealdah main line. Police had to resort to lathicharges to disperse protesters in Domjur and Howrah. In Asansol, a procession of Left Front cadres got into a scuffle with INTTUC supporters, who also held a rally. The protesters lay down on the road to stop traffic. One of them was injured when the wheel of a tractor went over him.
Meanwhile, attendance at Nabanna was normal.
"All central trade unions, federations, and farmers' organisations have lodged their protest against the Centre's anti-worker policies and labour codes. Unemployment is raging, and farmers are unable to get a proper price for their produce. In Bengal, state govt was even more agile in opposing the bandh. Our workers were beaten up. The police force, which looks the other way when women are raped or riots take place, was active in stopping our workers protesting against anti-people laws," said CPM state secretary Md Salim.