http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120413/jsp/calcutta/story_15367983.jsp#.T4g8qFFa5vY

Assault on rights rally

OUR BUREAU

(From left) Asim Chatterjee, Kabir Suman, Sunanda Sanyal and Koushik Sen (standing) at the APDR meeting at the Academy of Fine Arts on Thursday. Picture by Sanat Kumar Sinha Get beaten up by alleged members of the ruling party, be prosecuted and watch your attackers get away scot-free — that's exactly what happened in the heart of the city on Thursday. A group of youths, allegedly Trinamul Congress workers, kicked and punched members of a rights organisation protesting eviction from Nonadanga even as police remained mute spectators. Video footage from Hazra beamed on news channels showed assistant commissioner of police Tapash Bose looking on as Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR) members were being beaten up. None of the attackers was arrested although a police complaint had been lodged. Instead, police prosecuted six APDR activists. The daily report of incidents released by the Lalbazar police headquarters had no mention of the assault, only how rights activists had tried to violate a police order, prompting law enforcers to arrest six of them. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee denied having heard of the assault. "I have no such news," she said before leaving Writers' Buildings. Top cops remained tightlipped when asked about the assault. "Please contact the deputy commissioner of the south division regarding the incident," said Jawed Shamim, the joint commissioner of police, headquarters. DC (south) D.P. Singh did not pick up his phone despite several attempts. Evicted residents of Nonadanga off the EM Bypass, accompanied by APDR activists, had assembled at the Asutosh Mukherjee Road-Hazra Road crossing around 12.50 pm. Debaprasad Roy Chowdhury, the secretary of APDR's Calcutta committee, alleged that the police had restricted them citing Section 144 imposed across the city by the police commissioner. "We asked to see a copy of the police commissioner's order but they failed to show anything," Roy Chowdhury said. Sources at Lalbazar, however, said the order was withdrawn last week. Trouble began when a group of youths arrived in autorickshaws and charged at the protesters, beating them up and pushing them to the ground as the police looked on. Asked about the assault, assistant commissioner Bose said he had seen nothing. Transport minister Madan Mitra said Trinamul supporters were not involved. The state Congress condemned the attack. "The attack by Trinamul workers on a peaceful assembly in presence of policemen was undemocratic. Such an attack reminds us of the Left Front regime," said state Congress spokesman Abdul Mannan.