The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress faction has taken the advisory issued by Kolkata Police to a single-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court. The advisory imposed prohibitory orders for 60 days near the CESC House, the traditional venue for the party’s annual Martyrs’ Day event.
Justice Sougata Bhattacharya, the single-judge bench, has accepted the petition, and a hearing is scheduled for July 15. Kolkata Police’s advisory invoked Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, restricting gatherings of four or more people in the specified area.
The ban period includes July 21, the date set for Trinamool Congress’ annual Martyrs’ Day rally. The faction led by Mamata Banerjee has raised concerns over the timing of the prohibitory order. The faction’s counsel, Kalyan Banerjee, has criticized the order as arbitrary and a violation of fundamental rights.
Trinamool Congress had previously held its Martyrs’ Day rally at the CESC House until 2025. Presently, the party is divided into two factions, with one led by Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, and the other by expelled party legislator Ritabrata Banerjee. While the Ritabrata faction plans to hold the rally at an alternative location this year, the Mamata faction insists on the traditional venue.
