Kolkata, Oct. 25 -- Bibliophiles will take to the streets of Kolkata on Thursday to protest against alleged attacks and vandalism at Left-wing bookstalls across West Bengal during the Durga Puja festivities, with organisers claiming that nearly 300 stalls were targeted during the celebrations.
The march, titled 'Walk for Books', will reportedly begin at College Street, the city's historic book hub, on October 29. Participants have been urged to carry a book as a symbol of resistance against attacks on freedom of thought and cultural expression.
The organisers alleged that several bookstalls were vandalised across the state, with incidents of arson also reported. They said the attacks went beyond political intolerance and amounted to an assault on the freedom to read, publish and sell books.
"Books are not merely commodities but instruments of knowledge, thought and protest," the organisers said, appealing to book lovers and concerned citizens to join the march.
CPM central committee member Sujan Chakraborty said books share an inseparable bond with Bengalis and that attacks on them are unacceptable. Drawing a parallel with Nazi Germany, Chakraborty recalled the fate of Adolf Hitler, arguing that those who resorted to attacking books would ultimately face serious consequences.
The march seeks to mobilise wider civil society against the alleged attacks and reaffirm the importance of protecting intellectual freedom and Bengal's cultural traditions.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.