Citizenship Act: Violent Protests Rock West Bengal, CM Mamata Banerjee Appeals For Peace

Mamata Banerjee, who has resolutely opposed the Citizenship Amendment Bill, appealed for peace, while the opposition BJP threatened to seek imposition of President's Rule if the "mayhem by Bangladeshi Muslim infiltrators continued."

Vehicles torched by protestors agitating against the passing of Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB)at Sanmtragachi in Howrah district. (Image: PTI)

Kolkata: Violent protests against the amended Citizenship Act rocked West Bengal for the second consecutive day on Saturday which saw torching of about five trains, three railway stations and tracks, setting on fire of at least 25 buses and damage to property. The protestors of the Act mostly targeted railway properties and Murshidabad, Malda and Howrah districts bore the brunt of their ire. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who has resolutely opposed the Citizenship Amendment Bill, appealed for peace, while the opposition BJP threatened to seek imposition of President's Rule if the "mayhem by Bangladeshi Muslim infiltrators continued." According to official sources, public property worth crores of rupees have either been destroyed or have been looted by the mob in various parts of the state. At Krishnapur station in Murshidabad district a number of empty trains were set on fire, besides railway tracks at Lalgola station, which they also ransacked. The agitators vandalised Sujnipara also in Murshidabad district and set fire on railway tracks at Harishchandrapur in neighbouring Malda district. They ransacked Sankrail railway station in Howrah district, torched its ticket counter and damaged the signalling system. "When RPF and railway personnel tried to stop them, they were beaten up," a senior Railway Protection Force official said. At Domjur and Bagnan in Howrah, protestors rampaged outside the stations, blocked roads and set fire to shops. The NH6 was blocked at Domjur by protesters who burnt tyres and ransacked several vehicles, a police official said. In some parts of Murshidabad and Malda, police stations were also attacked by mobs. Huge police contingents were rushed to the spot to control the situation, the police said. A toll plaza was set ablaze in Murshidabad and passengers were forcibly deboarded from a bus at Suti in the district. Tyres were burnt on the roads at Margram in Birbhum. In North 24 Parganas district protestors came out on the streets at Rajarhat in the outskirts of the city and other parts of the districts, burnt tyres on the streets and ransacked vehicles. The protests affected movement of trains in South Eastern Railways and in Howrah and Sealdah sections. The agitators staged sit-ins on the tracks at Shondaliya and Kakra Mirzapur stations on the Sealdah-Hasnabad section since 6.25 am. While the one at the Shondaliya is still on, the blockade at Kakra Mirzapur was withdrawn at 9.30 am, a Railway spokesperson said. Train services came to a halt in Howrah-Kharagpur section of the South Eastern Railway since 11 am as protesters sat on the tracks at Sankrail, Nalpur, Mourigram and Bakranawabaz stations, said its zonal spokesperson Sanjoy Ghosh. Seventy eight trains, including 28 express trains, were cancelled by the South Eastern Railway following the violent protests, a SER official said. Around 39 trains were either rescheduled or diverted, he added. Around 25 private and public buses were torched by angry protestors on the arterial Kona Expressway which provides connectivity to NH2 (Delhi Road) and NH6 (Mumbai Road) while a number of buses were set ablaze in Malda and Murshidabad districts, police said. In some cases even fire engines and ambulances were not spared by the protestors, the police said. NH 34, one of the arterial roads that connects north and south Bengal, was blocked in Murshidabad. Several other roads in the district were also blocked, it said. Police resorted to lathicharge in some areas of Murshidabad district to control the protestors, officials said. Banerjee on Saturday twice appealed to the people to maintain calm and protest "democratically". She said violence will not be tolerated and stern action will be taken against the miscreants. "Do not take law in your hands. Do not put up road and rail blockades and create trouble for the common people on the roads," a CMO release quoting Banerjee said. "Do not cause damage to government properties. Strict action will be taken against those who are found guilty of creating disturbances," the statement said. West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is in conflict with Banerjee and the TMC government, tweeted "Distressed and pained at events unfolding in the State. Chief minister as per oath has to bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India, and I as Governor will to the best of my ability to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law". Opposition parties BJP and CPI(M) blamed the ruling TMC for doing nothing to control the situation and allowing the "state to burn". BJP national secretary Rahul Sinha Saturday said if the situation continues, the party will be left with no option but to seek imposition of President's Rule in the state. CPI(M) state secretary Surya Kanta Mishra blamed TMC government of failing to control the situation. Intellectuals like film maker Aparna Sen and actors Kaushik Sen and theatre actor-director Rudraprasad Sengupta urged protestors to shun violence.