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Kabir said the officials arrived without prior notice at 3.15pm and attempted to enter the premises forcibly. He stated, “The security guard asked why they wanted to enter. They claimed to have an order. When asked to show it, they produced the document. We then asked for permission to make a phone call, and we arrived here immediately after that call. Three of us from the party, myself, Derek O’Brien, and advocate Biswanath Chattopadhyay, came here and asked to see the notice.”

He questioned the authenticity of the document, adding, “The notice they presented lacked a letterhead, a memo number, an official stamp, and even a signature. It stated that a signboard had to be removed. We asked who had lodged the complaint regarding the signboard… Despite all this, they were still attempting to enter.”

Kabir alleged that when party leaders demanded a proper notice, the authorities called for police reinforcements which led to a physical confrontation. “We insisted that they first bring a proper notice before we would allow entry. Meanwhile, they kept making phone calls to bring in police reinforcements, steadily increasing the number of officers… What followed was a physical assault. They beat us up. At 5.50pm, amid the shoving and scuffling, they tackled Abhishek. They punched Derek O’Brien, and the poor man fell down… People in heavy boots actually trampled over. They smashed the door and the signboard, loaded them onto a van, and hauled them away,” he added.

Kabir described the episode as a targeted attack on the party, saying, “This is a political vendetta, not just one hundred per cent, but two hundred per cent political vendetta.”

The controversy arose after Kolkata Municipal Corporation officials, accompanied by Kolkata Police personnel, removed a signboard reading “All India Trinamool Congress” from the building housing Banerjee’s office. The TMC claimed police used force against party workers during the operation.