On Tuesday, BJP MP Samik Bhattacharya raised the issue of land encroachment at Kolkata Port in the Rajya Sabha. He highlighted that the area has been publicly referred to as “mini Pakistan” by Kolkata’s mayor, a statement that triggered strong reactions and uproar in the House as reported by PTI.

Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shantanu Thakur, admitted that a significant portion of Kolkata Port’s land has been encroached, mostly by people linked to the ruling TMC government. The minister said that the port authority has filed court cases to recover the land, but enforcement has been difficult.Thakur said, “What the MP has said is right… people there have encroached all the place.”