Clashes occurred between Hindus, Muslims and police personnel in Kiradpura, Aurangabad district on Thursday
Aurangabad: Former Maharashtra minister and Congress leader Arif Naseem Khan on Wednesday demanded a probe by a sitting high court judge into the violence in Aurangabad city ahead of Ram Navami, saying no report has been brought on the incident yet.
At least 12 persons, including 10 policemen, were injured after a mob of around 500 people went berserk and hurled stones and petrol-filled bottles when the cops tried to control the situation following a clash between two groups near a Ram temple at Kiradpura locality on the intervening night of March 29 and March 30.
Ram Navami was celebrated on March 30.
Khan spoke to the media after meeting Aurangabad Police Commissioner Manoj Lohiya.
“We expect an inquiry by a high court judge in the case of Kiradpura violence in Aurangabad a few hours before Ram Navami. The incident occurred over a month ago, but no report citing the reason behind it has come out yet,” Khan said.
Condemning the incident, Khan said it has to be investigated to find out what are the elements behind it and “who is getting the political mileage out of it”.
“Hate speeches were given in Aurangabad on March 18 and March 19. Later, after a period of one week or more, the incident (violence near Ram temple) took place. Why did the police not act on it and beef up security in the city,” Khan asked.
Kolkata: National Investigation Agency (NIA) probing the Ram Navami violence in Howrah and Hooghly districts of West Bengal, on Wednesday, sought from the state police all the documents, including copies of the FIRs, related to the case.
A communique on this count has reached the offices of the commissioners of Chandernagore Police Commiserate and Howrah City Police, sources said.
A copy of the same has also been forwarded to the office of the additional director general in charge of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the state police.
Although initially CID-West Bengal took over the investigation, on April 27, a division bench of the Calcutta High Court ordered an NIA probe into it.
It is learnt that NIA has sought a quick response from the state police authorities so that their sleuths can start the investigation at the earliest.
Meanwhile, state government sources said that the administration is mulling the possibility of approaching the Supreme Court challenging the decision of the division bench of the Calcutta High Court directing NIA probe into the matter.
On April 27, while directing the NIA to take over the probe in the matter, Calcutta High Court’s division bench of Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya also directed the state police to handover all case-related documents to the NIA within the next two weeks.
While passing the order, the bench observed that it is beyond the ability of the state police to find those who were responsible for the clashes or who instigated it and hence a probe by a central agency was necessary.
Earlier, the division bench questioned the efficiency of the intelligence wing of the state police regarding the pelting of stones from the roofs of residences in the troubled belts.
The bench questioned the failure of the intelligence in getting information about stones being accumulated on the rooftops.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Attacks on Muslims continued well into the month of March in India, as violence against minorities went on unabated. March was already stained with more lynchings and the rise of cow vigilantes like Monu Manesar, Puneeth Karehalli and Radha Semwal Dhoni to name a few.
As Ramzan began in March, it also also welcomed Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanthi, both Hindu festivals sprinkled with hate speech and objection over namaz offerings in different places. The violence, which took place last year as well, created an atmosphere of anarchy and unrest amongst the minority community in non-BJP ruled states such as Bihar and West Bengal.
This article is a part of Siasat.com’s hate-crime tracker which chronicles atrocities against Muslims in India. The tracker chronicles everything from verbal discrimination, assault and lynching/murder each month of the year, and a report will be published.
March 2: A Mazar (Muslim shrine) was demolished by right-wing worker Radha Semwal Dhoni and her colleagues claiming it was built on state land. The incident happened in Uttarakhand. A video has emerged where two men are seen breaking the shrine with hammers.
Radha Semwal Dhoni with Hindutva priest Narsinghanand Saraswati
March 9: A 47-year-old Muslim man was lynched by a Hindu mob who accused him and his nephew of carrying beef. The incident happened in Rasulpur of Chhapra district, Bihar on March 7.
In a press release, police said that three people have been arrested and the hunt is on for the remaining accused. According to Maktoob Media, the deceased Naseeb Qureshi and his nephew Firoz Qureshi were returning home when they were attacked by a mob of 10-15 people.
While Qureshi was brutally beaten with sticks and sharp weapons, his nephew managed to escape. However, when he approached the police to rescue his uncle, he received callous behaviour.
March 14: Fifteen people were detained by the police on Tuesday after alleged stone pelting was reported on a mosque, an Urdu medium school and a few Muslim houses during a Hindu bike rally to unveil the statue of Sangolli Rayanna in Haveri district, Karnataka. Reports suggest that a similar rally was carried out and a few members of the Muslim community were alleged to have pelted stones.
The mob allegedly also threatened the children going to the school and pelted stones at the nearby mosque, and the nearby Urdu school was also pelted with stones.
March 15: A case was registered in Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar against suspended BJP MLA from Telangana T Raja Singh after a video of his vitriolic speech targeting Muslims went viral on social media.
Suspended Telangana BJP MLA T Raja Singh
“Whoever speaks against Hindus, we will not spare them,” Singh said to a rousing saffron crowd comprising mostly youth in Rahta tehsil. “In our Hindu Rashtra you won’t even get a loudspeaker to do what you do five times a day,” he said in an apparent reference to Muslims offering prayers.
March 17: Two meat vendors were allegedly beaten up and robbed by seven men, including three Delhi Police personnel, in east Delhi’s Shahdara, a senior officer said. The incident took place in the Anand Vihar area when the two meat vendors were travelling in their car and hit a scooter. The accused, alleged to be ‘gau rakshaks’, urinated on the victims’ faces and threatened to kill them, the police said.
March 19: Members of a right-wing group, Hindu Jan Garjana Morcha, attacked a women’s public washroom, among other acts of violence in an attempt to remove the name ‘Aurangabad’ from its board.
According to reports, the incident took place during a march organised by the Sakal Hindu Ekatrikaran Samiti. The rally witnessed speeches by the editor-in-chief of Sudarshan News Suresh Chavhanke who used derogatory terms to address Muslims whilst slamming Aurangzeb.
“There is no body of Arungzeb in his grave, Marahatas have done with him what America did with Osama bin Laden,” claimed Chavhanke challenging history writers to dig up his grave.
March 25: Workers of the right-wing organisation Bajrang Dal allegedly assaulted a Muslim man who was with his Hindu female friend at a park in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. They accused him of promoting ‘Love Jihad’.
A video went viral on social media platforms wherein the Hindutva members can be seen questioning the young man while the girl pleads with them to let go.
March 27: After reports of a young Muslim man being arrested by the Vadgaon police in Maharashtra emerged, Hindutva groups took out a rally in Sawarde village demanding the accused’s family be exiled.
According to a local Marathi news Lokmat, the accused – Mohammed Momim – had put up a Whatsapp status on Mughal ruler Aurangzeb in reference to the recent name change of the city of Aurangabad.
Disturbing:-
A Muslim man in Kolhapur had kept a video as his WhatsApp status.
That video praised Aurangzeb.
The police arrested him and charged him for hurting religious sentiments.
Mohammed Momim was finally arrested by the police under Section 295 (Injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class) of the Indian Penal Code.
However, matters did not end here. Hindutva organisations took out a bike rally demanding the Sarpanch of the village declare Momim’s family as outcasts. They wanted the family to leave the village for good.
March 27: A group of right-wing organisation men objected to the offering of Taraweeh prayers by some Muslims in Lajpat Nagar of Moradabad district, Uttar Pradesh.
Rashtriya Bajrang Dal men, led by its state president Rohan Saxena, barged into the house of one Zakir Hussain who was praying along with his family. Saxena alleged this was creating an atmosphere of panic nearby. A notice was issued to one Zakir Hussain and nine others.
Notice to Zakir Hussain & 9 others for reading Namaz at Hussain’s godown. Notice says they might disturb peace and asks why shouldn’t they execute bonds with Rs. 5 lakh surety. So reading namaz at private property disturbs peace,but those protesting against it are ensuring peace. pic.twitter.com/DsdzsvgKJ8
March 27: Leaders from the ruling BJP delivered an Islamophobic speech in full swing at the Digital Hindu Conclave held on March 18.
BJP leader Kapil Mishra, Kajal Shingala aka Kajal Hindusthani and far-right author Kshitij Patukale compared minorities, particularly those belonging to the Muslim community, to snakes. She called for violence, as the only way to attain Akhand Bharat besides raising the topic of ‘Love Jihad.’
Kajal Shingala said that there can never be brotherhood between Hindus and Muslims and called out those who support secularism and peace between the two communities as a “sinking ship”.
BJP leader Kapil Mishra spoke about ‘Love Jihad’. Taking the recent murder of Shraddha Walker, whose live-in partner Aftab Poonawala stored her chopped body in a refrigerator, he said, “There will come a day when we will see ads like keep fruits in the fridge, not ‘Shraddha’.”
March 28: Amid the ongoing Hindu festival of Chaitra Navratri, cow vigilantes and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders forcibly shut down meat shops in several localities.
Videos of BJP leader Ravindra Singh on rounds in the Muslim locality Mandawali Fazalpur in Vinod Nagar of West Delhi surfaced on social media. He demanded local meat traders shut down all nine days of the Hindu festival Navratri which commenced on March 22 (Pratipada Tithi) and ended on March 30 (Navami Tithi).
Chicken shops in the Muslim locality of Mandawali Fazalpur in Vinod Nagar West, Delhi, have been shut down by BJP leader Ravindra Singh in honour of Navratri. pic.twitter.com/OZcIj5cfRj
March 30: A mob of more than 500 persons allegedly attacked policemen in Maharashtra’s Aurangabad wherein a few young men belonging to the Hindu and Muslim communities clashed, police said.
The incident took place in Kiradpura which has a renowned Ram Temple. People belonging to both communities shouted slogans followed by stone pelting at each other.
#Maharashtra | A clash broke out between two groups in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar’s #Kiradpura area
Stones were pelted, some private & police vehicles were set on fire. Police used force to disperse the people and now the situation is peaceful. Police will take strict action… pic.twitter.com/vVoQK2chZk
March 30: Stones were hurled at a Ram Navami procession in the Fatehpura area of Gujarat’s Vadodara city. While some vehicles got damaged, no one was reported injured. The procession passed along its planned route under police protection.
Gujarat | Stone-pelting happened today in Vadodara during Rama Navami Shoba Yatra. As per the police, the situation is under control & peace is prevailing in the affected area. pic.twitter.com/5BGMpxivBy
March 30: The Tamil Nadu Police arrested seven persons including a juvenile for allegedly forcing a woman to remove her hijab at the Vellore Fort Complex in Tamil Nadu.
The woman had gone to the fort along with her friend when she was surrounded by the men who demanded her to remover the hijab. One of them shot the incident on a phone and uploaded it on social media platforms which went viral.
March 30: The Karnataka police lathi-charged Bajrang Dal and Hindu activists when their protest against the recital of the Quran at a historical Hindu religious fair turned violent in Beluru town.
The Hindu organisations had given a bandh call in Beluru town. The situation turned volatile when a Muslim young man raised the slogan “Quran Zindabad” amid the protest.
March 31: After Jalgaon and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Hindu and Muslim groups clashed in the minority-dominated Malvani area of the Malad west suburb during a Ram Navami procession after locals objected to loud DJ music played during the Hindu religious procession. Enraged, some of the participants allegedly indulged in pelting stones, sparking panic.
Location: Malad, Mumbai
People who were part of a Ram Navami rally stopped outside a mosque in Malwani and raised provocative slogans, causing tension in the area. Police resorted to lathicharge to bring the situation under control. pic.twitter.com/5I6GGgn0HE
Patna: Former BJP MLA Jawahar Prasad has surrendered before a district court in Bihar’s Sasaram in connection with communal violence during Ram Navami celebrations on March 31.
A Non-Bailable Warrant (NBW) was issued against Prasad for his alleged connection in the violence.
Prasad, who was absconding since then, finally surrendered before district court on Friday evening.
Confirming the development, spokesperson for Rohtas police said that an FIR was registered against Prasad in the town police station of Sasaram. “Following his surrender, we have arrested him and the process is to send him to judicial custody,” he said.
Besides Prasad, another accused named Mohamad Shahnawaz Alam alias Lakhani also surrendered before court on Friday evening.
The official further said they have arrested 63 accused in connection with the violence.
“The district police has obtained NBW against 38 accused who were involved in communal violence and we are also going to start the process of property attachment against 12 persons as well,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has said that whoever is the culprit, he/she will be punished.
“The state police are taking action against the accused. We are not directing them for action. I want to tell them that whoever is the accused, the state police will take strong action,” he said.
“Our government would neither frame nor save anyone. Police are looking after everything and taking action on the wrongdoings. Everyone knows I do not interfere in the work of the police,” the chief minister said.
The communal violence erupted in Sasaram and Nalanda during Ram Navami celebrations, just before the rally of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Following the incidents, the BJP blamed the Nitish Kumar government for failing to control law and order in the state.
Kolkata: A division bench of the Calcutta High Court on Thursday ruled that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) will probe the clashes during the recent Ram Navami processions in certain pockets of Howrah and Hooghly district of West Bengal.
The division bench of Calcutta High Court’s acting Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya directed the state police to handover all case- related documents to the NIA within the next two weeks.
Following the clashes, the leader of the opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari had approached the same division bench of the Calcutta High Court with the plea for a central agency probe.
On April 10, the NIA authorities also informed the Calcutta High Court that they will have no problem in taking over the probe on this count if the court permits.
The division bench observed that it is beyond the ability of the state police to find those who were responsible for the clashes or who instigated it and hence a probe by a central agency was necessary.
Justice Sivagnanam also raised questions about the suspension of Internet services in the troubled belts after the clashes. “In such clashes the Internet services cannot be suspended. Such events keep the people tense,” he observed.
Earlier, the division bench questioned the efficiency of the intelligence wing of the state police regarding pelting of stones from the roofs of residences in the troubled belts. The bench questioned the failure of the intelligence in getting information about stones being accumulated on the rooftops.
New Delhi: The NHRC has sent a notice to the West Bengal police chief and the Howrah police commissioner over an alleged attack on a Ram Navami procession, officials said on Friday.
In a statement, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) observed that the allegations, if true, amount to a failure of authorities to exercise due diligence to avert the incident.
The commission has taken “cognisance of a complaint alleging an attack by miscreants on Sri Ram Navami Shobhayatra despite permission from the authorities in the area under Shibpur Police Station, Howrah District, West Bengal on 30th March, 2023,” it said.
The alleged armed attack was done with the malafide intention to ruin the peaceful yatra and to cause grievous injuries to its participants in order to frighten and deter them from organising such an event in the future, the rights panel said.
It added that the police allegedly refused to accept a written complaint to take action in the matter against the “miscreants”.
The Constitution of India entitles all persons to the freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practise and propagate religion, the statement said.
“The State is answerable, if these rights are abrogated without substantive reasons. Accordingly, it has issued notices to the Director General of Police, West Bengal, and the Commissioner of Police, Howrah, directing them to inquire into the matter, and submit a report within two weeks. They have also been asked to ensure that proper legal procedure is followed in the investigation in the matter, and no one is subjected to hardship due to any illegal action of the police,” it said.
The report must contain the details of the FIR registered, the status of the investigation, and the arrest, if any, in the matter. It should include the number of people injured, the treatment given to them, and also the details of the destruction of property, if any. It should also mention the safety measures taken to avoid such incidents, the statement said.
(Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
A fact finding team from the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) visited Bihar following large scale communal violence that took place during and around the Ram Navami rally last month. Based on its findings, the APCR said that the violence reflected “the total failure of administrative duties and lack of preparedness” by the JD(U)-RJD government. On a wider perspective, the organised that the incident ruined the social fabric of India via depicting “Hindutva supremacy”.
The APCR team included Mohammad Moboshshir Aneeq, advocate, Prashant Tandon, senior journalist, Saiful Islam , advocate, Gulrez Anjum, social activist, Nasiquz Zaman, advocate, and Mohammad Zahid, social activist, who visited Bihar Sharif and Sasaram districts. They recorded statements of families affected by Ram Navami procession in the aftermath of violence.
The ACPR said that in the aftermath of the violence, the Bihar police registered 20 First Information Reports (FIR) and arrested around 200 People. Out of 20 FIRs, 15 had been registered in Bihar Sharif. Several people had been arrested including the convenor of Bajrang Dal Kundan Kumar who was reportedly the mastermind of the communal riots.
The ACPR report said that the others who had been arrested include Rajnish Kumar, Dharmendra Kumar, Tushar Kumar, and Manish Kumar, all allegedly part of the WhatsApp group that delivered hate speech during the Ram Navami processions. According to the police, 457 people were part of the WhatsApp group.
The fact finding team said, “The politicization of religious festivals, highly provocative and Islamophobic songs, and forced entry eventually resulted in communal conflagrations in the two districts of Bihar. Religious festivals nowadays have been completely taken over by RSS-BJP activists and fringe elements like Bajrang Dal and Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) for communal polarization.”
Explaining the pattern of violence, the ACPR fact finding team in its report pointed out that Hindutva organizations approached the district administrations, asking for permissions for the Rama Navami processions, which were granted in many cases with terms and conditions.
“People – especially youth – riding on hundreds of motorbikes take out rallies, brandish brand-new swords and other weapons, and play highly objectionable/communal songs. Violating the terms and conditions, they try to enter Muslim-majority areas or deviate from the route that is objected to by the local Muslim population. As a result, stone pelting starts, and then shops and other properties belonging to a particular community are set on fire,” the report stated.
An allegation amongst victims that was common was that the mob was carrying a large number of swords. Further, CDs and pen drives containing Islamophobic songs were also distributed to play on loudspeakers during the Ram Navami Procession, the report stated.
Recommendations
The team recommended that to avoid further occurrence of such violence, the accountability of the public officials and elected representatives who participated, instigated and encouraged the riots be fixed and should they be given exemplary punishment as per the rule of law.
“The government should conduct a thorough investigation into the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice. It is essential to hold the guilty accountable to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future. Further, the compensation should be granted to all the victims of the riots as per their damage/loss suffered,” it stated.
The fact finding team further recommended that the Bihar government appoint a commission headed by retired judge for evaluating every individual damage/loss and thereafter grant compensation to victims. A judicial enquiry should be ordered and conducted to look into the plan and programme of the organized violence must be done, the ACPR team said.
“It is crucial that the government provides support to the victims and their families and takes measures to rebuild the affected areas. It is only through such collective efforts that we can prevent the recurrence of such incidents and promote a society that is inclusive, just, and peaceful for all.,” it stated.
The APRC team concluded that the Ram Navmi violence in Bihar Sharif and Sasaram will go down in history as a dark chapter in the city’s past. “Such incidents have left a scar on the hearts of the people, and it will take a long time for the wounds to heal. It is a reminder that communal harmony is fragile and must be nurtured with care. It is the responsibility of every citizen to uphold the values of peace and harmony and work towards a better tomorrow,” it felt.
Hyderabad: The Shahinayathgunj police here arrested the man who carried the picture of Gandhiji’s killer, Nathuram Godse, during the Sri Ram Navami Shobha Yatra (rally) on March 30. The accused has been identified as Chinta Hema Kumar, 21, a resident of Siddiqnagar in Gachibowli.
According to the police, Kumar carried the photograph of Nathuram, who shot Mahatma Gandhi to dead in public in 1948. A video clip of Kumar holding the photograph and marching in the procession had gone viral and drew wide criticism on social media. The police booked a case under 504 of IPC after the incident and arrested him.
Kumar was produced before a local magistrate and remanded.
In the Ram Navami rally in Hyderabad, suspended Goshamahal BJP MLA Raja Singh also joined the main procession when it passed via Mangalhat. It was there that the portrait of Godse appeared. People who joined Singh’s fringe rally waved photos of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin.
The annual Sri Ram Navami Shobha Yatra here has become a show of strength for Hindutva groups to flex. The procession has also become a launchpad for Hindutva mascot and suspended BJP MLA Raja Singh to release new inflammatory ‘songs’ every year. In 2022, he sang a song degenerating Muslims and threatened to “kick” them out of India if they “don’t chant Ram’s name”. This year was no different.
Raja Singh as a practice has been singing songs and releasing them during the Sri Rama Navami festival each year. One of latest songs, ‘Baap Tu Baap Rahega’, was clearly a dig at the ruling government (or even the cops) for arresting him last year and putting him in the jail under the PD Act after he released a video passing derogatory comments against Prophet Muhammad. He did that in retaliation against the state got allowing comic Munawar Faurqui to hold a show.
The MLA released a few more songs at his mega saffron rally, which were officially uploaded on some Youtube Channels and played during the Shobha Yatra procession. The lyrics this year also mention his PD Act detention following registration of a series of cases for making derogatory remarks against Prophet Mohammed in a video and also old cases booked against him for delivering hate speeches. The lyrics goes ‘Jail Ka Taala Tuth Gaya, Baap Tumhara Choot Gaya’.
The song is of 5:10 minutes duration. People who joined Singh’s Hindutva rally waved photos of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin, now a beloved Hindutva figure. Raja Singh was eventually booked by the police in different cases after the Ram Navami rally.
Mumbai: The Indian Penal Code (IPC) section related to criminal conspiracy has been invoked in the case of stone pelting at a Ram Navami procession in suburban Malad late last month, Mumbai police officials said on Monday.
More than 20 persons have so far been arrested in connection with the incident which took place in the Malvani area of Malad on March 30.
A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against more than 200 people, they said.
The police team probing the case of violence recorded statements of an Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officer and a cop from the Malvani police station on April 2, an official said.
Both the personnel, in their statements, told the probe team March 30 violence was orchestrated by the accused persons, including those arrested and wanted, deliberately, he said.
They sat together near a mosque, by violating the orders prohibiting unlawful assembly, and hatched the conspiracy of the crime, the official said.
Accordingly, IPC section 120 (B) (punishment of criminal conspiracy) was added to the FIR on April 2 following directions from senior police officials, he said.
Earlier, the police had invoked various IPC sections, including 353 (assault or use of criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means), 145 (unlawful assembly), 147 (rioting) and relevant sections of the Maharashtra Police Act, against the accused.
A police official earlier said the tension began on March 30 following disputes over loud DJ music being played in the procession as it passed through the vicinity of some mosques in Malvani.
As per the FIR, more than 6,000 people had participated in the Ram Navami procession organised by the Bajrang Dal, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and some other Hindu organisations.
The procession began from Ram Janki temple late in the afternoon.
Around 7.25 pm, as it was moving towards Jama Masjid, 100 to 150 people objected to the high volume of music as namaz was going on in the mosque, a police official earlier said.
As the music volume was not lowered, there was some slogan-shouting and one of the men who had objected to loud music allegedly hurled a stone at the procession and it hit a participant, he said.
Police personnel deputed for security along the route immediately took the man who had thrown the stone into custody, he said.
As per the FIR, when the procession was near the Ali Hazrat mosque around 8.45 pm, a mob of 200 to 250 people began to pelt stones.
As police tried to bring the situation under control, some people in the mob hurled stones at them and manhandled some police personnel, the FIR said.
Kolkata: The members of a fact-finding team of Delhi-based NGO “Fact Finding Committee on Human Rights Violation” on Sunday evening said that the clashes over Ram Navami processions in West Bengal’s Howrah and Hooghly districts call for an investigation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
After being restricted by police on Sunday afternoon from going to Shibpur and Kazipara in Howrah, where clashes broke out over Ram Navami processions on March 30 and continued till the next day, the members of the fact-finding team came back to Kolkata and talked to the media persons.
“Despite being restricted in reaching the troubled spots in Howrah district on Sunday and to Rishra in Hooghly district on Saturday, we were able to somehow interact with some of the local people. What we heard from them is quite shameful. There were not adequate police forces when the trouble broke out in these pockets. The administration is playing the ‘me & you’ game. This is a perfect case for a NIA-level probes. At the same time, central armed forces personnel should also be deployed there,” a team member said.
Meanwhile, political slugfest has started over the police denial to the members of the fact-finding team to reach the troubled spots at Hooghly on Saturday and after that at Howrah on Sunday.
According to the Trinamool Congress’ state General Secretary and party spokesman Kunal Ghosh, the police had done the right thing by denying them permission. “Since Ram Navami, BJP has been trying to create problems in those areas by using the outsiders,” he said.
BJP’s state spokesman Samik Bhattacharya alleged that since the administration has a lot of things to hide, they prevented the members of the fact-finding team from reaching those pockets in Howrah and Hooghly districts.
