Nabanna Campaign Rally Latest News: In West Bengal, the war of words continues between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) over the ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ rally and the violence that followed. On one hand, the BJP says that the state government is using the police to suppress the protesters, while the TMC has accused the BJP of bringing outsiders to spread anarchy in Bengal.
TMC’s Kunal Ghosh said, “The police showed extraordinary restraint in handling the situation. Those who are claiming police arbitrariness should not forget the protests of 1993.” Let us tell you that demanding justice for the victim in the rape and murder case of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, student organizations demanded to march to the state secretariat Nabanna on August 27, but the administration did not allow it. After this, the students tried to forcibly take out a march on 27th, which led to clashes.
What happened in 1993?
The 1993 Bengal protests were triggered by the 1991 Bengal assembly election results and allegations of rigging. The CPI-M-led Left Front had won 245 of the 294 seats at the time. The protests that began after the results continued for about a year and a half. On July 21, 1993, Mamata Banerjee, who was then the Youth Congress president, led a march to the iconic Writers’ Building in Kolkata, which was then the Bengal Secretariat. The protesters were demanding that voter ID cards be made compulsory to ensure free and fair elections. However, the police stopped them about a kilometre away from the Writers’ Building. The administration also imposed Section 144 and restricted movement around the Secretariat.
One group of protesters was led by Mamata Banerjee, while the other group broke the police cordon at 11 am. This happened when a junior officer of the Calcutta Police allegedly ordered his force to open fire on the protesters. Thirteen protesters were killed in police firing that day. Mamata Banerjee was also injured in this incident. This incident brought Mamata Banerjee to the national limelight. She received the support and sympathy of the people of the state. After about three and a half years, she left the Congress along with some of her supporters and formed the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC).
State response then vs. now
The CPI-M government led by CM Jyoti Basu supported the police action against the Writers’ Building protest on 21 July 1993, saying that the police had done the right thing in preventing the occupation of the Writers’ Building.
On Tuesday (August 27, 2004), the TMC also supported the police action, saying that the police showed great restraint by not firing at the protesters despite stone pelting and rod attacks. On both occasions, the ruling parties claimed that the police acted only when the protesters crossed the prohibitory orders.
How is the situation different then and now?
However, a major difference in the police action is that in 1993, the bullets used were fired directly at the torso and not at the legs as per prescribed protocol, while in the ‘Nabanna Abhijan’ protest, the police had erected barricades. When the protesters broke the barricades, the police resorted to lathicharge. When the protest turned even more violent, the police used water cannon and tear gas shells to disperse the crowd.
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