A Kolkata Municipal Corporation earthmover moved towards CPM and AISA book stalls near Jadavpur University on Saturday evening, triggering tension over whether the stalls had secured the police permission required alongside civic approval. The action was reportedly initiated after police told the KMC that the stalls had been set up without the necessary permission.
A KMC official from the solid waste management department said the civic body had been asked to remove the stalls because police permission had not been obtained. According to the official, permission for such stalls is issued by the civic department on the condition that applicants also secure police clearance.
“The police have informed us that their permission was not taken. So, we were asked to mow down the stalls,” the official said, according to the report. The official added that several stalls had been established after obtaining civic permission, but indicated that the police clearance requirement remained applicable.
The proposed removal affected book stalls associated with the CPM and the All India Students’ Association near the 8B bus stand. AISA state president Ritam Maji disputed the authorities’ account, saying the organisation had operated its stall at the location for about 10 years, paid KMC taxes and completed the required formalities in advance.
Maji alleged that police and KMC officials arrived without prior notice and attempted to close the stalls despite the organisation having documents and tax receipts. He also claimed that officials were asserting that only a BJP stall had permission to remain. The authorities had not, according to Maji’s account, provided a written order explaining why the documents submitted by the organisation were considered invalid.
The dispute comes amid a wider controversy over political book stalls traditionally set up near Durga Puja pandals across Bengal. Left parties have used these stalls for decades to sell Marxist literature, Bengali fiction and science books. The practice has also become entangled with a dispute over the terminology used on stall banners, with Left organisations often using “Sharodotsav” rather than explicitly referring to “Durga Puja”.
Political opponents, including Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and other leaders, have criticised the practice and urged puja committees not to provide space to CPM stalls that avoid using the term “Durga Puja”. The present dispute also involves competing interpretations of a recent court observation, according to Maji.
The KMC indicated that similar stalls could face removal in Patuli, Bansdroni and Gobra. The immediate issue for the civic administration is whether each stall has complied with both municipal and police requirements, while the organisations involved maintain that they had secured the necessary permissions and followed the applicable procedures.
