Kalyan Banerjee moves Calcutta HC fearing arrest of 800 Trinamool workers

The Trinamool Congress has approached the Calcutta High Court expressing apprehension that around 800 of its party workers across West Bengal may be arrested ahead of the Assembly elections. Acting on the plea, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Sujay Paul and Justice Parthasarathi Sen has granted permission to file the petition. The matter is likely to be heard on Wednesday.

Representing the party, Kalyan Banerjee informed the court that there is a strong apprehension that nearly 800 workers have been identified and kept under watch, raising fears of imminent arrest. Urging immediate judicial intervention, he stated in court, “There is an apprehension that those TMC workers may be arrested.”

According to the party, the concern stems from alleged actions by the Election Commission of India, with claims that the identified workers could be detained through police action ahead of polling. The plea sought urgent hearing and court intervention to prevent any such arrests without justification. The bench accepted the request and allowed the filing of the case.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has repeatedly raised similar concerns during campaign rallies, warning of possible arrests of party leaders and workers. She said, “There will be attempts to arrest many people,” and alleged that instructions were being issued from higher levels to target Trinamool workers.

Earlier, at a rally, she claimed, “Be very careful about the voting machines. Their plan is slow voting, slow counting. First they will show BJP is winning. They are trying to arrest many people. The operation will begin from midnight. We also get information. If TV shows they are winning, it’s false.” She further accused the Commission of acting under BJP’s influence and conspiring against her party, following which Trinamool decided to move the court.