TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee's office is again in controversy. The fire department on Friday ordered the evacuation of Abhishek Banerjee's office at 9 Camak Street in Kolkata. Notably, the Fire Department ordered the 6th and 7th floors and basement of the 9 Camac Street building to be evacuated.
Fire safety certificate has not been renewed
TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee's office is on the 6th and 7th floors of the same building. The fire department alleged that the fire extinguishing system of the fire department is not good and also alleged that the fire safety certificate has not been renewed. Therefore, it has been ordered to be evacuated immediately.
"No fire safety measures were traced in the basement of the high-rise. Following that, we served a show-cause notice to the owner of the building and gave them a 48-hour deadline. Since we did not get any response and the deadline passed, we sent them a notice to evacuate the basement, sixth and seventh floors of the building. If the basement of any building has no fire safety measures, it could lead to a big disaster in case of a fire," the official told PTI.
Basement, sixth and seventh floors would not be allowed to be used
He said the fire safety certificate for the premises expired on August 10 and had not been renewed. In the notice sent to the building owner on Friday, the department said the basement and sixth and seventh floors would not be allowed to be used until the deficiencies are rectified and a valid fire safety certificate is obtained.
A joint team of police and fire officials conducted a floor-by-floor inspection of fire safety measures in the building on Monday. The inspection found inadequate firefighting measures on the seventh floor, no designated fire exit and problems with the fire alarm system, according to the notice. Tensions erupted with police on August 27 over the building. On Thursday night, the 6th and 7th floors of the building were vandalised.
Just a week ago, authorities removed an "illegal" billboard of the TMC from the same building, during which private guards at Banerjee's office, his supporters and some party leaders had scuffled with police and Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) officials.
Abhishek Banerjee's office was ransacked on Thursday
Abhishek Banerjee's Camac Street office in the city was ransacked in the early hours of Thursday, sparking a fresh political row in West Bengal, with the opposition party blaming BJP-linked men for the attack, a charge denied by the ruling party.
In this regard, the police arrested six people, all from neighbouring Howrah district, in connection with the incident that occurred a week after the police removed an "illegal" billboard of the TMC from the same building.
Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime) Kunal Agarwal said the arrested people would be questioned to ascertain their motive and whether they had any political affiliation.
After the matter came to limelight, Mamata Banerjee condemned the incident, warning of dharnas outside BJP leaders' residences in New Delhi if the "atrocities" against her party continued, while the ruling party rejected any role in the attack.
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