A public urinal adjacent to a passenger rest area on the Contai-Petuaghat state highway in East Midnapore’s Mukundapur that had been built with government funds has been illegally occupied by a club that is allegedly affiliated to the Trinamul Congress.

The urinal had been built at a cost of Rs 10 lakh earlier this year, with half the money coming from Contai MP Sisir Adhikari’s local area development fund. The rest of the cost was borne by the zilla parishad.

According to local sources, a group of youths owing allegiance to the Trinamul-run Night Moon club in Mukundapur forcibly took control of the urinal even before it could be inaugurated.

“Over the past one week, they have been demolishing the most basic structures of the urinal, which had been built as an additional facility for the restroom. They are changing the structure from inside to suit the needs of the club that they want to set up there. As the youths are associated with the ruling party, no one had dared to raise their voice till the demolition began,” a resident said.

“This is hooliganism at its worst and must be stopped,” he added.

The sight of the demolition has angered a group of villagers who on Thursday submitted a deputation at the BDO’s office in East Midnapore’s Deshpran, protesting against the misappropriation of a public property.

“It is open for anyone to see what these goons have been doing for the past week,” said a protester.

The group was received by Basantia panchayat member Dolon Bhunia, who admitted the role of a section of Trinamul workers behind the incident and said she would initiate immediate steps to stop the demolition.

“The district administration did not react on time and this has affected our party’s reputation,” Dolon said.

District Trinamul leader Mahmud Hossain has instructed administrative officials and police to take immediate action against the club members.

He has asked the police not to look at the political affiliation but let law take its own course. “Most importantly, the intended structures needs to be restored,” Hossain said.
Residents recalled the longstanding need for such a rest area on the highway.

“Thousands of people pass through this area on a daily basis and such a structure is indispensable for public health and sanitation. It has been in the works for over four years,” said villager Raja Das.

Deshpran BDO Pankaj Mullick on Thursday said he was “travelling but knew about the incident”. He said he would look into the matter urgently as soon as he resumed office.