Kolkata: Posta Bazaar Merchants’ Association secretary Biswanath Agarwala, who was slapped, harassed and attacked with eggs inside the association office last month, has resigned from his post, saying he was “forced” to step down after the public humiliation. The association’s president has also resigned and a new office-bearer has been appointed.One of the accused, arrested for the assault on Agarwal and later, released, claimed the change was brought about with the “full help of the administration”.“I was forced to resign, so I exited the committee. I am just a normal member of the association now. I am 73 years old and have been in Posta for over 50 years. I could not take the humiliation and resigned. I am a middle-class trader and did not have any strong support,” said Agarwala, who had been the association secretary for over three decades.The resignations came about a month after violence erupted inside the association office on July 2, shortly before a scheduled meeting. According to the complaint lodged at the Jorabagan PS, a group entered Agarwala’s office, abused and harassed him and hurled eggs at him. In a widely circulated video, a woman was seen slapping the 73-year-old Posta association secretary. Association members alleged some traders, along with outsiders were involved in the incident and that more than 50 people barged into the office, questioning the association’s functioning and finances.In protest, traders shut down the state’s biggest wholesale market for essential commodities, demanding action against the attackers. Trader organisations demanded a time-bound investigation and Posta Bazaar Merchants’ Association members held a silent rally, demanding arrests. They withdrew the strike a day later after four persons were arrested, including the woman, who had slapped Agarwala. She was named the main accused, while the other three were identified as Chandan Chakraborty, Anand Kumar Mishra and Sunil Chaudhary.Chakraborty, who was the former working president of the association, claimed the resignations vindicated those who had opposed the previous leadership. “We have been able to make the president and the secretary resign with the full help of the administration. I was kept in police custody for five days but when everybody came to know they had been up to, we started receiving support,” he said.The association has since appointed a new secretary and president. Arun Kedia, the new general secretary, sought to strike a conciliatory note, saying the focus should return to the market’s functioning. “All of us are traders here and we are like a family. If anyone has any problem, he or she can come to me to resolve it. We should put differences of opinion behind and work for smooth functioning of the market and traders,” said Kedia.After the assault, trade bodies, including Confederation of West Bengal Trade Association and All India Marwari Federation, met Agarwala to express solidarity and urged govt to ensure security for the business community.
