An assistant professor of mathematics who came to Bikash Bhavan for official work, leaving his two-year-old son in a crèche in Jadavpur, and a 71-year-old woman who stamps official documents were among hundreds trapped inside the Salt Lake address on Thursday.
Some of them were let out following police action on the protesters late on Thursday. But past 9.30pm, many still remained inside.
Bijon Biswas, 40, the math teacher at Vivekananda College in Behala, came to Bikash Bhavan at 2pm. He left past 9.30pm.
Biswas had finished his work by 3.30pm but was not allowed to leave the premises despite pleading with the protesters.
“My two-year-old son is in a crèche in Jadavpur. My wife has a nerve ailment... she is almost bedridden. But the protesters refused to listen to me or let me go,” Biswas told Metro.
Every day after college, Biswas picks up his son from the crèche around 5.30pm before going home.
“The crèche closes at 8pm. How will a two-year-old understand why nobody is picking him up? It is a situation beyond my control,” said Biswas.
The math teacher coordinated with friends and relatives and arranged for someone to pick his son up just in time for the crèche to close.
Shortly after, the police intervened at Bikash Bhavan.
Around 8pm, the cops partly dispersed the protesters.
Since 2pm, the protesters had not let anyone leave the building. This included
employees of as many as 52 government departments.
Around 8pm, some were able to leave. Many left the building but were still inside the premises of Bikash Bhavan.
Shankari Mukherjee, 71, was among the first to be escorted out. The police helped the Beleghata resident cross the boundary wall.
A sultry Thursday and the crowd had made Mukherjee feel sick.
A contractual worker who puts stamps on official documents, Mukherjee sits on the ground floor. Throughout the day, she pleaded with protesters the age of her children or younger.
“I came at 9.30am after eating a bit of rice. I am hungry. Please consider my age and let me go,” Mukherjee was heard telling them.
Many employees inside Bikash Bhavan, including staff of the higher education department, said they were in touch with higher authorities and had asked to be rescued.
“The grouse of the teachers is against the administration, so why are we made the targets here? We are mere employees. We have no role to play in recruitments,” said a 31-year-old data entry operator.