Hooghly’s Rishra and Serampore have been placed under Section 144 after a recent incident of stone-throwing at Rishra Train Station in West Bengal. This comes after violence during Ram Navami celebrations in various parts of the country, including West Bengal. As a result of the violence, local and mail express train services between Howrah and Bardhaman lines were suspended by the railway authority. To prevent any further unpleasant incidents, a large police presence and fast response team have been deployed in the area.
The political situation in West Bengal has also escalated, with the opposition BJP accusing the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government of promoting violence against Hindus on Ram Navami in response to their party’s defeat in the Sagardighi by-election. BJP MP Mahesh Jethmalani singled out the TMC as being the “most dangerously communal” of all the “pseudo-secular” parties.
After the recent incident of stone-pelting at Rishra on Monday, the BJP launched an attack on the TMC. The railroads were forced to halt all local and mail express train services going to and from Rishra Railway Station due to the stone-throwing. However, train services were restored after midnight when the situation had improved. The state administration has also issued cease-and-desist orders and shut off internet access throughout the district to prevent any further unrest.
