After violence in Shibpur and Kazipara areas in Howrah district on March 30, a similar clash broke out on Sunday evening between two groups of people at Rishra in West Bengal’s Hooghly district over Ram Navami procession in which BJP vice-president and Lok Sabha MP Dilip Ghosh along with other leaders had also participated.
BJP legislator from Khanakul assembly constituency, Biman Ghosh, along with a number of police personnel including the officer-in-charge of Rishra police station, Piyali Biswas, were injured in the clashes.
The police said that as the procession reached a busy market area in Rishra on Sunday evening, a group of people attacked the procession following which clashes broke out.
The police resorted to cane-charge, and also fired teargas shells to bring the situation under control.
Biman Ghosh received injuries to his head, following which he was admitted to the nearby Uttarpara State General Hospital.
According to the Commissioner of Chandernagore City Police, Amit P Javalgi, Section 144 has been imposed in Rishra.
A huge police contingent has been deployed in the area. Internet services were suspended in the area till 10 p.m. on Monday.
West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose, after an initial discussion with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, has issued a statement claiming that the state government will take strong action against those involved in such unruly activities.
Claiming that the attack on the procession was pre-planned, Dilip Ghosh said it seems unlikely that the police did not have prior information about the attack on the procession. “The police should have been more careful,” he said.
Trinamool Congress MLA from Serampore assembly constituency Sudipta Roy said that outsiders who participated in the procession resorted to the violence in a planned way to disturb peace in the area.
(The story has been published via a syndicated feed with a modified headline.)
The meaning of secularism is lost when a religious procession is attacked by a mob belonging to other religion.
The religious procession, as the name implies, should be a peaceful one from the end-to-end journey. But unfortunately, it has been observed that Ram Navami processions have been obstructed and attacked in different parts of India by Muslim communities as they proceeded thru Muslim mahallas. The question is whether such a procession would hamper/undermine the prayers during Ramjan in Masjids. If so how?
The authorities could have changed the timing of the procession by discussing the matter with the Hindus (organizing the procession) and local Muslims.