Shops in Kolkata’s New Market demolished with bulldozers 2 days after BJP victory

Just two days after the BJP’s election victory, bulldozers were used to demolish shops in Kolkata’s Hogg Market, also known as New Market, in a manner reminiscent of northern India.

Witnesses told Prothom Alo that several shops were torn down on Tuesday evening.

The Hindu nationalist party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), came to power in West Bengal for the first time on Monday with a sweeping majority. The incident has since raised concerns among the administration, which has announced strict measures to control the use of bulldozers. Most traders in New Market belong to the minority Muslim community.

Social activist Soumya Mondal, who was present at the scene, told Prothom Alo that the demolition began around 6:30–7:00 pm.

“A large area was affected. A friend and I witnessed only part of it and managed to record some video. A clothing shop opposite the Kolkata Municipal Corporation was bulldozed and brought down within moments,” he said.

Soumya and his friend had just stepped out after eating at a restaurant called UP-Bihar, located beside the shops. The restaurant is one of the larger eateries in New Market and serves beef. He said that as soon as the demolition began, shop workers switched off the lights.

“We came out and saw the bulldozer demolishing shops. Loud DJ music was playing, along with BJP slogans like ‘Jai Shri Ram.’ The entire area was covered in BJP flags,” he added.

Soumya alleged that numerous uniformed personnel of the Kolkata Police were deployed at the site during the demolition.

“There were also central forces, though we couldn’t record them. The incident took place right in front of the police,” he claimed.

He said multiple shops in the area were demolished, though he could not confirm the full extent as he left quickly due to being obstructed from taking photos.

The Trinamool Congress stated that one of its party offices and adjacent shops belonging to local people were also demolished. However, as of this morning, detailed reports on what exactly was demolished or the full sequence of events have not yet appeared in West Bengal or Indian media.

Kolkata Police Commissioner Ajay Nanda said that processions involving bulldozers would not be allowed.

He warned that legal action would be taken against owners who rent out bulldozers for such activities.