Kolkata, May 30: Trinamool Congress General Secretary and Lok Sabha MP Abhishek Banerjee was admitted to a private hospital in Kolkata on Saturday after he was heckled and allegedly assaulted in Sonarpur of South 24 Parganas district. He was escorted out of the area by police and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel before being brought back to the state capital for medical examination.
Upon arrival at the hospital, Banerjee was seen entering the premises in a wheelchair. He is currently undergoing check-up by a team of doctors, hospital sources said.
Following news of the attack on her nephew, Trinamool Congress supremo and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also reached the Eastern Metropolitan hospital and went straight to the emergency unit, where Abhishek Banerjee was being examined. She was accompanied by Abhishek Banerjee’s mother, Lata Banerjee.
A number of senior Trinamool leaders also rushed to the hospital soon after the incident came to light. Among those who arrived were West Bengal Leader of the Opposition Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, former Union Minister of State for Finance (Independent Charge) Chandrima Bhattacharya, and Trinamool Congress Legislative Party leader in the Assembly Derek O’Brien.
Earlier in the day, Abhishek Banerjee had gone to Sonarpur to meet the family members of slain Trinamool Congress workers, who are reportedly victims of post-poll violence. However, his visit was met with strong protests from local residents, particularly women, who gathered in large numbers and raised slogans against him.
During the protest, the women demonstrators allegedly physically assaulted and slapped the Trinamool leader and also hurled eggs at him. In an attempt to protect himself from further injury, Banerjee was seen wearing a cricket helmet after being struck by eggs thrown by protesters.
Despite the unrest, he managed to meet the family members of the deceased Trinamool worker and speak with them briefly. He was later escorted out of Sonarpur by West Bengal Police and CAPF personnel amid continued protests along the roadside.
As he was being taken away, the women protesters lined both sides of the road, shouting slogans and calling him a “thief.”
Soon after the incident, Mamata Banerjee issued a social media post, directly accusing the BJP and the state government over the attack on the Trinamool Congress leader.
