Kolkata, May 14 (IANS) A mild tension erupted at the premises of the Calcutta High Court on Thursday as Mamata Banerjee, the Trinamool Congress chief and former Chief Minister, was leaving the court premises after arguing as a counsel on a PIL filed at a division bench on the alleged post-poll violence in the state.

The Chief Minister complained of being assaulted by a section of lawyers at the Calcutta High Court premises.

As the former Chief Minister was leaving the court premises, a section of the advocates started shouting slogans addressing her as a “thief”. Some in the crowd of advocates and common people were also heard using abusive comments at the former Chief Minister.

“They have assaulted me,” Mamata Banerjee told the waiting media persons, pointing at the agitated crowd. Soon after that, she left the court premises.

Trinamool Congress criticised the development. According to the party’s spokesman, Arup Chakraborty, those who constantly speak of democratic values in West Bengal acted in such an undemocratic manner and that too within the premises of the temple of justice.

“A three-time Chief Minister of West Bengal went to the Calcutta High Court today to seek justice for the victims of the post-poll violence. If she can be heckled in such a manner and that too within the court premises, it is easily understandable how far the democratic ambience in the state will prevail in the new BJP regime,” Chakraborty said.

Earlier, Mamata Banerjee made a forceful argument at a division bench of the Calcutta High Court’s Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen, seeking the court’s intervention in preventing post-poll violence, “especially against women and the people from the minority community”, since the results of the recently-concluded West Bengal Assembly polls were declared on May 4.

However, the state government counsel, Dhiraj Trivedi, rubbished her claims in counterarguments and claimed such allegations were baseless in the absence of specific instances cited in court.

–IANS

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