Over 200 people have now been arrested in connection with the recent violence and arson in West Bengal’s Murshidabad. The current focus of the police is to restore normalcy in the area, where tension persists after protests against the Waqf (Amendment) Act spiralled into violence in Murshidabad district of West Bengal on Friday, killing three.
Police and central forces said they are actively conducting route marches and confidence-building exercises to achieve this goal, while the Additional Director General (ADG) of Law and Order for the state police, Javed Shamim, expressed confidence that “full normalcy would be restored soon”. He further said, “For the last 36 hours, there have been no reports of fresh violence. We are now putting all our efforts and channelising all our energy into bringing normalcy.”
On Monday, Shamim confirmed that over 200 people had been arrested, at a press conference in Bhabani Bhawan. “We all saw what happened Friday onwards. You have to understand that it takes time to pacify the situation whenever there are communal flare-ups in any state. However, here it is much better, and the credit goes not only to the police but to the press, social media, and people in general who are very responsible,” he said.
According to the state police, the number of First Information Reports (FIRs) filed in connection with the unrest is also increasing. “We will find the culprits from wherever possible. But everyone involved in instigating an act of violence will face stern punishment,” said Shamim.
“Among those who had left home, around 19 families have returned. Slowly, we are working in tandem to bring them back. In the last 36 hours, no violence has been reported. The situation is coming back to normal, but internet suspension will continue as rumour-mongering has proved to be a big issue for law enforcers,” he said.
Highlighting the dangers of misinformation, Shamim said, “The biggest enemy to peace is rumour-mongering. The DGP is camping there, senior cops are all there on the ground. I appeal to people that we must be responsible and check facts before we corroborate them.”
Addressing concerns about the police’s response time, he said, “The situation has been such that it is very normal for people to have grievances and allegations. We will look into each of them.”
Regarding potential intelligence failures concerning the scale of the gathering at the Waqf site, Shamim said, “Lots of things have been going on. We saw Ram Navami, Eid… everything was celebrated peacefully. Of course, in such situations, we have inputs, and accordingly, senior-level officers were there, but the scale of mobilisation was very high.”