Police on Monday arrested nine CPM activists, including doctor-filmmaker Kamaleswar Mukherjee, and allegedly manhandled veteran advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya from Rashbehari where they had gathered to protest the reported vandalism of a party bookstall by Trinamul goons on Sunday.

Initially, Bhattacharya was forced into the van. When he asked for an arrest memo from law enforcers, they allegedly could not produce it.

“I told them that if they force me into the van, the consequences will be dire,” the Rajya Sabha member said.

He was allowed to go, but the nine arrested were taken to Lalbazar. They were released later in the evening.

“The disturbance was initiated by local Trinamul goons.... They were angry that I fought cases against their leaders and managed to get them arrested,” Bhattacharya said, adding police should have acted against the goons but decided to arrest CPM activists instead.

CPM state secretary Md Salim rushed to the spot to get the bookstall running. Salim blamed South Calcutta DCP Akash Magharia. “Under him, Calcutta police has been brought down to such lows that they won’t allow a peaceful protest against vandalism,” he said.

On Sunday evening, a CPM bookstall set up at the junction of Rashbehari Avenue and Raja Pratapaditya Road was allegedly attacked by Trinamul-backed goons. CPM leaders said posters of “Chor dhoro, jail bhoro (arrest thieves, fill up jails)” angered Trinamul supporters.

The CPM protest was decided to be held on Monday at the same spot. CPM leaders alleged that activists were dragged into van even before the protest took proper shape. Sources said local Trinamul leaders had forced Durga puja committees to lodge complaints that the CPM bookstall created hurdles for them.

Trinamul Rajya Sabha member Santanu Sen rubbished the charges and said the CPM was “trying to stay relevant by creating political unrest”.

Mukherjee’s arrest was condemned by many from the film fraternity, including National Award-winning director Srijit Mukherji. “Afraid of books? Books? Don't have enough words of condemnation for the arrest of Dr Kamaleswar Mukherjee. With you, Kamalda, for whatever it is worth,” he wrote on social media.