Mamata Banerjee protest over 2 am attack claim, BJP denies

Representative image. Ankur P from Pune, India, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Why it matters

The row sets a former chief minister against the state police her party once controlled: Mamata accuses officers of siding with the BJP, while Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has warned against attacks on police. Her threat to go to the Supreme Court could move the dispute from the street to the courts. It is playing out on the eve of Kali Puja, in a locality she describes as a route for Kali processions.

Former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee joined Trinamool Congress (TMC) workers in a protest outside her nephew Abhishek Banerjee’s home at Kalighat in south Kolkata on Saturday, 7 November 2026, hours after a 2 am clash there that the TMC blames on BJP supporters. She dared the BJP to “run your bulldozers over my body”, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported. The BJP rejected the TMC’s charge and accused TMC supporters of provoking the confrontation.

The Mamata Banerjee protest is the second chapter of a day that began with clashes between about 2 am and 3:30 am outside the house of the Diamond Harbour MP, on his 39th birthday. NewsPlainly covered that night in our report on the Abhishek Banerjee home clash. This article covers what happened after daylight: Mamata’s protest, the replies from the BJP and Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, and what the police have said.

The Mamata Banerjee protest: what she said at Kalighat

Mamata reached her nephew’s residence for the Kalighat protest later in the morning, the Times of India reported, and spoke to reporters there. “Tomorrow is Kali Puja and Diwali. Last night, at 2am, an attack was carried out at Abhishek Banerjee’s house,” she said, as quoted by the news agency Asian News International (ANI).

Her sharpest lines were about bulldozers. “How many bulldozers do you have? Bring them all. If you have the courage, come and run your bulldozers over my body. I am standing right here… Run your bulldozer over my chest if you dare,” she said, according to PTI’s report carried by ThePrint.

She also linked the clash to national politics and to the INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) opposition bloc, which the TMC belongs to. “We are part of the INDIA alliance, and I believe that is one of the reasons behind this political hostility. But being part of an opposition alliance does not give anyone the right to target us or interfere with our legitimate political activities,” she said, according to PTI.

Speaking to supporters during the Kalighat protest, she said: “I will not go, I will stay here,” The Week reported.

Her allegations against the police and the puja permissions

Much of the Mamata Banerjee protest was aimed at the Kolkata Police and at permissions for Kali Puja in the neighbourhood. These are her allegations; the reports read did not include a police reply to each of them.

• The attack: “At 2 am or 3 am, BJP lumpens, along with the police, are attacking people’s homes,” she said, as quoted by PTI.
• The lane: she accused the police of blocking the lane to her home and imposing prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). “This is Patuapara, where idols are made. Why are you preventing people from carrying out their activities?” she said. NewsPlainly did not find a copy of any such order.
• The new puja: she said permissions for old, traditional pujas had been revoked while a new puja was allowed at a road bend on the main road around 9 pm on Friday, blocking access to the local puja. “This is pure high-handedness and oppression,” she said, according to ANI.
• Women supporters: she alleged that police personnel smashed the shakha-pola bangles worn by married Bengali Hindu women during a confrontation outside the house, PTI reported.

She also warned officers: “I know what your capacity is and what promotion you will get, but do not cross your limits. If you cross the limits, I will fight you.” The New Indian Express quoted her as saying: “If necessary, I will personally approach the Supreme Court and raise these matters before the highest judicial authority.” She said she had written to the Lok Sabha Speaker about law and order, according to the Times of India.

Later in the day, after another round of confrontation between police and TMC supporters outside the house, she asked workers to stay calm and not fall into what she called a “BJP trap”, PTI reported. She said that if the restrictions continued, she would hold the Kali Puja in front of the Kalighat temple.

How the BJP and Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari responded to the Mamata Banerjee protest

The BJP rejected Abhishek Banerjee’s allegations and accused TMC supporters of provoking the confrontation, PTI reported. West Bengal minister Dilip Ghosh said: “When power is lost, such charges are common.” The BJP has run the state government since May 2026, with the TMC in opposition.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari was asked about the Kalighat incident while inaugurating a Kali Puja at Maniktala in north Kolkata on Saturday morning, Dainik Jagran reported. Without naming Abhishek Banerjee, he said, in the paper’s Hindi report, that the Kali temple should not be defiled by naming mafias in front of Goddess Kali. Jagran noted that he did not directly answer the allegations against BJP workers and did not blame either side. In PTI’s English report, Adhikari said: “Let us not destroy this purified environment by talking about corrupt people and thieves.”

At a separate event at the Kolkata Police headquarters, where he handed appointment letters to 309 new police recruits, Adhikari warned against attacks on police personnel, PTI reported. The Deccan Herald reported the 309 appointment letters. Hours later, the TMC posted a video on X that it said showed a BJP supporter slapping a plainclothes policeman outside Abhishek’s house. PTI said it could not verify the video.

What Kolkata Police have said about detentions and arrests

Police statements so far have come from officers who were not named. A Kolkata Police officer told PTI that a commotion broke out between supporters of the two parties, a police team stepped in, and an investigation was under way. Around 7 am, an officer told the Hindustan Times that the situation was under control and several people had been detained.

The reports read did not give the number or names of those detained, did not mention any arrest, and did not include an FIR. On Abhishek’s side, he said: “Not one BJP lumpen has been summoned for questioning,” The Week reported. He also claimed the attack went on until 7 am, according to the Times of India; police officers quoted by the Hindustan Times put the clashes between about 2 am and 3:30 am.

Timeline: Kalighat on 7 November, from 2 am

NewsPlainly put this timeline together from the reports read. Times are IST and approximate where the source said so.

Time	What happened	Source
About 2 am to 3:30 am	Clashes outside Abhishek Banerjee’s Kalighat home as supporters gather for his birthday	Police officers, via Hindustan Times
About 3 am	Abhishek speaks to reporters, alleges a planned BJP attack	Hindustan Times
Until about 6:30 am	Abhishek sits on a dharna outside the house, goes in after police step in	Hindustan Times, Dainik Jagran
About 7 am	Officer says situation under control, several detained	Hindustan Times
Morning	CM Suvendu Adhikari, at a Kali Puja in Maniktala, responds without naming Abhishek	Dainik Jagran, PTI
Later in the morning	Mamata Banerjee reaches the house and joins the protest	Times of India
By about 2:40 pm	Her “bulldozer” remarks are published online	India Today, Hindustan Times (page times)
Later in the day	Fresh police and TMC confrontation; Mamata appeals for calm	PTI

For people in and around Kalighat, the practical effect of the clash and the Kalighat protest so far is a heavy police presence near the house on the eve of Kali Puja, which falls on Sunday, 8 November. The reports read did not include any police traffic or movement advisory for the lane.

What happens next after the Kalighat protest

After the Mamata Banerjee protest, Mamata has said she may go to the Supreme Court and could move her Kali Puja to the front of the Kalighat temple if restrictions stay. Police say their investigation is under way. Whether anyone is charged, and on whose complaint, had not been reported by the time of the reports read.

Frequently asked questions

Why did Mamata Banerjee protest at Kalighat on 7 November?

She went to her nephew Abhishek Banerjee's home after clashes there between about 2 am and 3:30 am, which the TMC says were an attack by BJP supporters. The BJP rejects that.

What did Mamata Banerjee say about bulldozers?

She said, as quoted by PTI: "How many bulldozers do you have? Bring them all. If you have the courage, come and run your bulldozers over my body."

What did the BJP say?

The BJP rejected the allegations and accused TMC supporters of provoking the confrontation. Minister Dilip Ghosh said such charges are common when power is lost.

Has anyone been arrested over the Kalighat clash?

An unnamed officer told the Hindustan Times several people were detained. The reports read did not mention any arrest, FIR or names.

Is there a Section 163 order in Kalighat?

Mamata Banerjee alleged police imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the BNSS. NewsPlainly did not find a copy of such an order.