At a Hooghly rail gate, stone heaps day after clash, tension in the air

Around 10 pm, the street clashes spilled on to the railway tracks, halting traffic on one of the busiest rail routes in West  Bengal for more than three hours, as two groups of people gathered on either side of the railway gate and hurled stones at trains and then at each other. A police vehicle was set on fire near the railway gate.

The immediate trigger could not be ascertained but residents in the area said it could be rumours of assault of two youths by members of a different community.

Police lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the violent crowds and bring the situation under control. Rail traffic finally resumed after three hours with a big police contingent standing guard as the trains passed, said officials. By then, daily commuters, who had failed to take the train home, had started protesting at Howrah station.

“Six local trains were cancelled and three express trains were delayed due to the Rishra incident,” said Kaushik Mitra, CPRO, Eastern Railway.

The number of people injured in the clash and those arrested could not be immediately ascertained.

On Tuesday, Governor C V Ananda Bose visited the clash site and took stock from police and railway officials. “At first I will see, analyse, access, decide and then there will be solid action on part of law enforcement agencies. We will never allow hooligans, goons to take law in their hands,” he said.

“Bengal has been suffering these kinds of criminal incidents of politics for a long time, we will put an end to this. The Government of India, state government, political parties, media and common people will join hands to see that mobocracy is rooted out,” he said.

This came on a day the Union Ministry of Home Affairs sought a detailed report from the West Bengal government on the violence during Ram Navami in Howrah.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee blamed the BJP for the violence and said she would not let any rioter go scot-free. Addressing a party workers’ meeting at Digha in East Midnapore district, she said, “The BJP is behind the violence in Hooghly and Howrah. They brought in hired ‘goondas’ from other states to unleash violence in Bengal. This is not in our culture… I appeal to everyone to maintain calm.”

Taking a dig at Union Home Minister Amit Shah for his recent remark, she said, “The BJP said if the party comes to power in Bihar, it would hang rioters upside down. Then why are they not doing that to their ‘goondas’ who are fomenting trouble in Bengal? Charity begins at home.”

The disruption of traffic on the vital rail link at Rishra has, meanwhile, caused concern in the administration as until now the clashes in Shibpur in Howrah and Rishra in Hooghly were restricted to the streets. This was similar to what the state witnessed during the anti-CAA agitation.

“Safety and security of the passengers is our priority. Like yesterday, if there is a threat to trains, we will have to stop it. Thousands of people suffer if trains are stopped. Stones are easily available on the railway tracks. If someone uses these stones to target one another or the trains, it is alarming,” said CPRO Mitra.

A senior police officer said, “Heavy deployment of police has been made on the streets as well as near railway gate crossings. We will not allow a repeat of what happened last night.”

Residents on both sides of the railway gate said they were shaken by Monday night’s clash.

“We are not safe. We cannot leave out house. Last night, miscreants from the other side first pelted stones at the trains and then tried to attack our colony. Somehow they were thwarted. They burned a police vehicle. I was injured in the stone pelting. The police reacted late,” said Prem Verma (19), showing a wound on his body.

The Subhasnagar Housing Complex, where Prem lives, houses more than 1,500 families, apart from shops and business establishments.

“After the incident, around 2.30 am, the police came to the complex. They hit the doors and windows with batons and shouted abuses, asking the youth to come out,” alleged Nisant Kumar, a businessman. “We did not open our doors. First we are attacked and then police harassment.”

Chandannagar Commissioner Amit P Javalgi did not respond to calls to seek the police’s version.
On the other side of the railway gate, Sheikh Abbasuddin, 69, said he was home when he heard a loud sound. “When I ran to the level crossing, I saw police forces trying to control a mob.”

Md. Zahir, a resident of Chhai Road, said, “Both sides were pelting stones. There was some rumour that some youths were beaten up by miscreants. We cannot imagine such violence in Rishra. I have never seen such an incident here. We are scared.”