Guwahati: A group of men purportedly associated with Hindutva outfits protested outside the office of Bengali newspaper Anandabazar Patrika in Kolkata and painted parts of the building wall saffron, days after the publication used the phrase “saffron hooliganism” to describe a clash at Jadavpur University.
Videos circulating on social media showed several men dressed in saffron clothes painting portions of the newspaper’s white exterior while shouting slogans, including “Hindustan will not tolerate the insult of saffron”. Police personnel were seen standing near the protesters during the incident.
The newspaper authorities later repainted the affected portions of the building to their original colour within a few hours.
The identities of those who painted the building were not immediately known, and no complaint had been filed in connection with the incident according to reports.
The protest followed a report on the August 20 clash between members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and Left-affiliated student groups at Jadavpur University.
The violence broke out during a general meeting of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology Students’ Union and continued into the early hours of the following day. Both sides accused each other of initiating the clash and alleged that outsiders had been brought onto the university campus.
Several students were injured and taken to hospital.
In its report on the incident, Anandabazar Patrika used the Bengali phrase “gerua gundami”, meaning “saffron hooliganism”, to describe the violence.
The newspaper’s editorial team, including two journalists, subsequently faced a first information report over the headline. The Indian Women’s Press Corps and the Press Association criticised the filing of the case, saying that the increasing registration of FIRs against journalists is a matter of concern.
The two press bodies said such cases “criminalise the journalist” and undermine the role of a free press.
The incident outside the newspaper’s office also drew criticism from Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh, who said protests should not turn into acts of brute force.
“Such a display of muscle power by uncultured brutes has dealt an ugly blow to Bengal’s image,” Ghosh said in a social media post, while also alleging broader attacks with government support.