Tensions are once again running high in West Bengal. Just days after deadly clashes in Murshidabad claimed three lives, fresh violence has broken out—this time in the South 24 Parganas district. The protest is led by the Islamist political party Indian Secular Front (ISF), led by the firebrand Muslim cleric Abbas Siddiqui of the Furfura Sharif shrine in the Hooghly district.
The epicenter of the latest unrest is Sonpur village in Bhangar, where chaos erupted late last night. A police vehicle was set ablaze, and several motorcycles were torched as angry mobs took to the streets, triggering a fresh wave of panic across the region.
Dramatic scenes unfolded on the streets as videos captured police motorcycles engulfed in flames and a police bus overturned, its windshield shattered. Amid the chaos, dozens of officers stood guard, trying to regain control of the volatile situation.
VIDEO | West Bengal: Tension in South 24 Parganas' Bhangar as Indian Secular Front (ISF) workers clashed with city police. They also set a van ablaze. More details awaited.
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(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/bnF8OnGu37) pic.twitter.com/fk17Jufpl3
This new wave of violence comes hot on the heels of last week’s fiery protests in Murshidabad, where three people lost their lives and several—including police personnel, were injured in the clashes. In the aftermath, authorities cracked down hard, arresting over 150 individuals linked to the unrest.
In response to the escalating tension, the Calcutta High Court stepped in, ordering the deployment of central forces not just in Murshidabad but across other protest-hit areas of West Bengal to restore law and order.
It is worth noting that Siddiqui of the Furfura Sharif shrine is notorious for stirring communal passions over perceived affront to Islam and the Quran. In October 2021, Abbas Siddiqui sparked controversy with incendiary remarks during a religious gathering in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, berating individuals who allegedly placed a copy of the Quran near a deity at a Durga Puja pandal in Bangladesh, calling for their “beheading.”
Siddiqui’s comments were in the wake of widespread violence in Bangladesh, where Islamist mobs attacked Hindu temples and communities following rumours of Quran desecration at a Durga Puja venue in Cumilla. He further criticised Muslim youths participating in Durga Puja celebrations, questioning their religious commitment.
Over a year ago, in 2020, Abbas wanted Allah to send a deadly virus to India that could kill twenty to fifty crore people. Abbas had said, “Recently, I have got the news that mosques are being set on fire, mosques have been burnt for the last two days. I think something is going to happen within a month. May Allah accept our prayers. May Allah send such a terrible virus to India that ten to twenty to fifty crore people die in India. Am I saying something wrong? It is blissful.”
