Murshidabad violence: Hindus fleeing in boats, take shelter in school; Suvendu Adhikari posts videos

After protests against the Waqf Act in West Bengal turned violent, Hindus are reportedly fleeing from Murshidabad.

Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, in a post on his X handle, said that more than 400 Hindus have been forced to flee from Dhulian, Murshidabad, cross a river and take shelter in school.

He also posted pictures and videos of fleeing Hindus.

“More than 400 Hindus from Dhulian, Murshidabad driven by fear of religiously driven bigots were forced to flee across the river & take shelter at Par Lalpur High School, Deonapur-Sovapur GP, Baisnabnagar, Malda,” said the BJP leader.

Adhikari said in the post that “religious persecution in Bengal is real”.

“Appeasement politics of TMC has emboldened radical elements. Hindus are being hunted, our people are running for their lives in their own land! Shame on the State Govt for allowing this breakdown of law & order,: he further wrote in the post.

He urged the Central Paramilitary Forces deployed in the district, the State Police and the district administration to ensure the safe return of these displaced Hindus and protect their lives from “this jihadist terror”.

“Bengal is burning. The social fabric is torn. Enough is enough,” he concluded in the post.

On Saturday, a special division bench of Calcutta High Court ordered the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) deployment in the district Murshidabad while saying that the measures taken by the West Bengal government to control communal unrest in the district during the last few days over protests against the newly promulgated Waqf (Amendment) Act were not adequate.

The division bench also observed that had the CAPF deployment been done earlier, the situation would not have been so “grave” and “volatile”. “The deployment of Central Armed Forces earlier could have de-escalated the situation, as it appears that adequate measures have not been taken in time,” the court said.

Stressing that the situation is “grave” and “volatile”, the division bench also stressed that there is an urgent need to take action against the culprits to arrest the atrocities committed on innocent citizens on a war footing. “Constitutional Courts cannot be a mute spectator and embroil itself in technical defences when the safety and security of the people are in danger,” read the order copy.

The Court issued the order after a petition was filed by Suvendu Adhikari. He had said that he had requested for urgent intervention of the state government by requisition of the Central Paramilitary Forces, but the same had not been acceded to by the state, forcing him to approach the court.

Commenting on the security situation in the state, Amit Malviya, in-charge of the BJP's National Information and Technology Department, said the morale of the West Bengal Police is at an all-time low. He said this was low, “following Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s repeated capitulation to rampaging Islamist mobs”.

In a post on his X handle, he said, “In fact, they even refused to enter the riot-affected areas of Murshidabad until the BSF arrived. The Director General of Police had to be physically present to coax his own force into action. A similar situation occurred during the Sandeshkhali unrest, where the state’s top cop had to intervene personally—though the reasons were different then.”

“During the RG Kar protests, it was police officers who held press conferences and planted stories to shape the narrative. Every time Mamata Banerjee finds herself cornered, she uses the police as a political shield, as if no other TMC leader is willing—or perhaps even allowed—to defend her. The rest appear to be nothing more than clerks in Mamata Banerjee’s criminal empire. A truly pathetic state of affairs,” Malviya said.