Ghosh alleged that the attack was intended to stop him from reaching Mamata’s meeting. After the incident, he turned his car around and went towards Bhabani Bhaban, the state police headquarters. He said he was not there to lodge a formal complaint because he had already emailed the Uttarpara police, but wanted senior officials to see the condition of his vehicle. He also accused the police of failing to act.
Mamata directly blamed what she called “BJP goons” for the incident and described it as an “ominous sign for democracy”. Reacting strongly to the attack, she said: “Such an incident does not occur even in any African country.” Her party colleague Asit Majumdar, who was overseeing the Serampore meeting, alleged that Trinamool workers were being stopped from reaching the venue. “Kunal Ghosh was attacked in the Sakher Bazar area of Uttarpara and subjected to ‘egg therapy’,” he said. “Trinamool cannot be stopped this way.”
The BJP rejected the allegation of involvement. BJP MP Rahul Sinha claimed that the incident was the result of internal conflict within the Trinamool Congress and said the BJP had no role in it. Akhruzzaman, associated with the camp of Trinamool leader Ritabrata Banerjee, also alleged that the incident was orchestrated by a rival Trinamool faction. These claims could not be independently established from the information available.
There was further political tension before the meeting after Dankuni police arrested Tumpa Mete, a former member of the Trinamool-led Hooghly Zilla Parishad. She was arrested on allegations of fraud involving promises of jobs. Her name had also appeared on the 2016 School Service Commission panel that was subsequently cancelled by the Supreme Court amid a corruption case. Mete denied the allegations, saying simply, “It is all a lie.” She alleged political vendetta and said: “What is happening across Bengal is happening to me as well.”
Despite the confrontation, Mamata eventually reached Serampore via Dankuni and Delhi Road rather than travelling through Uttarpara. A police vehicle accompanied her car, and she reached the venue without incident. Central forces were deployed in Uttarpara after the alleged attack on Ghosh’s vehicle.
