A woman allegedly tried to attack former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with a knife outside her Kalighat residence on Tuesday evening, the Trinamool Congress has claimed.The police, however, described the incident as an altercation and did not mention any knife in their statement.The woman was identified by TMC general secretary Dola Sen in a police complaint as Tannishtha Saha, a civic volunteer who allegedly claimed to be Banerjee’s niece. However, the police later identified the detained woman as 38-year-old Anusua Saha.According to Sen’s complaint, the woman began hurling abuses and tried to approach Banerjee aggressively when the former Chief Minister stepped out of her residence around 6 pm. Sen alleged that the woman was intoxicated and lay down on the road in an attempt to harm Banerjee.The police said the woman confronted Banerjee as she was leaving her residence, leading to a heated altercation. Personnel on duty detained her, and a complaint was subsequently lodged by TMC members.“Necessary action is being taken as per law,” the police said.Who is Tannishtha Saha, and why did she allegedly approach Mamata Banerjee?The TMC complaint identifies the woman as Tannishtha Saha and describes her as a civic volunteer. Civic volunteers are contractual personnel engaged by the West Bengal Police and Kolkata Police to assist with traffic management, crowd control and public safety.However, the police identified the detained woman as Anusua Saha. The available statements do not establish why she approached Banerjee or independently confirm the party’s allegation that she attempted a knife attack.The Banerjee faction of the TMC also alleged that the woman was a drug addict and questioned how she could approach the residence of a Z-plus protectee. The allegations have not been independently established.Sharing a copy of the complaint on X, TMC spokesperson Saket Gokhale alleged that a drug addict had reached Banerjee’s residence and tried to attack her with a knife. He also questioned whether the incident was part of a political conspiracy, but did not provide evidence to substantiate the claim.Earlier incidents involving TMC leadersThe incident comes amid claims by TMC leaders that members of the party have faced attacks since it lost power in West Bengal in May, following three consecutive terms in government.In August, Banerjee claimed that a large stone was thrown at her car in Kolkata’s Shyambazar area, leaving her with chest pain that lasted several days.In May, days after the Assembly election results were declared, TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s vehicle was allegedly targeted with stones and eggs in South 24 Parganas, a district considered his political stronghold.The vehicle of Baruipur Purba MLA Bibhas Sardar was also allegedly attacked on Saturday. Sardar claimed that a mob surrounded his vehicle, threatened to kill him and threw a brick at its windshield. He said he escaped unharmed.