On the 21st of May, a special fact finding committee submitted its report to the Calcutta High Court. In its report, the committee mentioned some serious facts about the inaction and failure of the police.
The committee — comprising Joginder Singh, Registrar (Law), National Human Rights Commission; Satya Arnab Ghosal, Member Secretary, West Bengal Legal Services Authority; and Saugata Chakraborty, Registrar, West Bengal Judicial Service — was tasked with identifying and assessing the damages and rehabilitation needs of the victims displaced by the violence.
According to the report, the “main attack” took place after 2:30 pm on April 11 in Dhuliyan town. The attackers allegedly had their faces covered to conceal their identities. The report notes that a garment mall in Dhuliyan was also looted.
Attacks were directed by the local councillor Mehboob Alam,” the report states, adding that local police were “completely inactive and absent”.
The reports also mentioned that many Hindu families were forced to leave their homes and took refuge in the Maldah district. But the Police and the administration forced them to return to their villages without ensuring proper security, mentioned the report.
The report also criticised the role of the police who were inactive during the violence. Also, in many places, the police were absent during the violence when locals contacted.
The committee mentioned the name of Betbona village which were worst hit by the violence. A total 113 homes of Hindus were looted, vandalized and then put on fire.
Following the report, the division bench of the Calcutta High Court observed that the victims require “individualised and customised rehabilitation packages” and stressed the necessity of “appointing qualified valuation experts” for effective recovery and compensation.
