BJP Calls 12-Hour Barrackpore Bandh Over Alleged Attack on MP Arjun Singh

The BJP on Sunday called a 12-hour bandh in the Barrackpore constituency for Monday, protesting what it said was an attack on its MP Arjun Singh. Singh suffered head injuries on Sunday at Kankinara in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, where police allegedly used batons to clear a road blockade.

The party’s protest plans

The state unit said the bandh would begin at 6 am, with a protest march setting off from Shyambazar Crossing in Kolkata at 10:30 am. The party also planned a sit-in over political violence in the state and the Sandeshkhali killings, with the families of Sukanta, Pradip and Debdas Mondal taking part. It said it would gherao the office of the DC South Suburban over what it called a collapse of law and order and attacks on its leaders Dilip Ghosh, Biswanath Das and Arjun Singh. Party officials added that 18 prominent personalities were expected to join the BJP at 2 pm the next day at its Kolkata office.

Conflicting accounts

Singh alleged that Barrackpore police commissioner Manoj Verma hit him, leaving a gash on his head, and that Verma led a police team that attacked a “peaceful” BJP protest over the seizure of the party’s office at Shyamnagar. After treatment at Apollo hospital he appeared in a bloodstained shirt with a bandaged head and said: “Police intentionally attacked me. I have received about 10 to 12 stitches.”

A senior police officer gave a different version, saying stones were thrown when two groups clashed at Kankinara, and that Singh was hurt in the confusion. According to local sources, a mob blocking a road began throwing stones once police arrived, and officers responded with a baton charge to clear the road.

Fresh clashes between supporters of the two parties broke out on Sunday over control of the Shyamnagar party office. Earlier that day, according to Ajay Thakur, DC (zone 1) of the Barrackpore police, unidentified people attacked Singh’s car near Shyamnagar railway station and smashed its windows. Over 50 people were injured in Sunday’s violence, among them some journalists, and a large police force was deployed in the area.

See also: Bharatiya Janata Party | Lok Sabha members

Originally published on 2 September 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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