Apr 14, 2025 11:33 AM IST
A police officer said the situation was under control, adequate security forces were deployed and people who fled to neighbouring Malda were gradually returning home
West Bengal’s communal violence-hit Murshidabad district was gradually limping back to normalcy as no fresh violence was reported, and residents forced to flee to neighbouring Malda were returning home, officials aware of the developments said on Monday.
“The situation is well under control. Adequate security forces, including state police and central forces, are deployed in the areas. There have been no reports of any fresh violence. People are gradually returning home,” an Indian Police Service officer monitoring the situation said.
A few hundred people from the violence-hit areas of Samserganj in Murshidabad crossed the Bhagirathi River to Malda. “Around 170 people were sheltered in a relief camp at the Parlalpur High School in Baishnabnagar. We are proving them with food, including baby food, medicines and clothes. Two more schools were kept ready to accommodate more people. But since Sunday around 50 people have returned to Murshidabad. More are likely to return on Monday,” an official in Malda said.
Clashes initially erupted in Murshidabad’s Jangipur last Tuesday following protests over the Waqf (Amendment) Act. The situation was brought under control before fresh violence broke out on Friday, forcing police to fire four rounds.
“It started with demonstration. Then there was destruction of public property and later it took a communal angle. Police initially used minimal force to control. But this does not mean we are action-shy,” said West Bengal Police chief Rajeev Kumar.
The violence left three people dead. A mob hacked a man and his son to death. The third person died when force was used. The Calcutta high court on Saturday ordered deployment of central forces.
A second police officer said around 17 companies of central forces and a total battalion of state police were posted in the area. “The state police chief also rushed to the spot and is still stationed there.”
