High Court issues contempt notices to Mamata and Abhishek over 'Shaheed Diwas' rally

The Calcutta High Court on Friday issued formal contempt of court notices to Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee and the party's All India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee. A division bench comprising Justice Arijit Banerjee and Justice Apurba Sinha passed the order during a high-stakes hearing concerning the public disruptions caused by the party's annual July 21 Martyrs' Day rally. The court’s decisive move places the top leadership of TMC under direct judicial scrutiny just weeks before their scheduled flagship political event in Kolkata.

This legal escalation stems from a long-standing public interest litigation (PIL) filed back in 2015 by a citizen named Akshay Kumar Sarengi. The petitioner had approached the judiciary to highlight how frequent massive processions, political rallies, and unmonitored religious events completely paralyze the traffic ecosystem of Kolkata and its surrounding suburbs. The petition detailed how critical arterial roads remain blocked for hours, preventing dying patients in ambulances from reaching hospitals, causing employees to miss work, and delaying school students.

Taking note of the severe public gridlock that recurs despite previous judicial guidelines, the division bench emphasized the gravity of the ongoing civic crisis. The High Court has demanded an official explanation from the TMC top brass as to why highway blockades continue to disrupt civilian life and what specific preventative measures the leadership has instituted. The court wants to ascertain whether the party leadership is actively monitoring compliance with citizen transit rights during large-scale political mobilizations.

The matter has now been listed for its next decisive hearing on July 3, 2026. The upcoming session will reveal how the ruling party's legal representatives defend their leaders and structure their arguments against the contempt notices. Regardless of the immediate response from the TMC legal team, this development guarantees that the Calcutta High Court will maintain exceptionally strict surveillance over the logistical arrangements of the upcoming July 21 rally to safeguard the public's right to unhindered travel.