Ram Navami clash: Amit Shah speaks to West Bengal Governor, takes stock of situation

Union Home Minister Amit Shah called with West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Friday and assessed the situation in the state, where violence erupted between two factions during a Ram Navami procession in Howrah city on Thursday evening, according to top sources.

During his phone call with Bose, the Home Minister obtained extensive information on the incident that sparked rioting in Howrah city on Thursday evening, when many vehicles were set on fire and shops were ransacked. During a chat with West Bengal Governor, Shah obtained information regarding the current scenario in the city.

According to state police, several persons were detained in connection with the alleged violence that erupted while the Ram Navami procession was moving through the Kazipara neighborhood in Howrah city.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has promised strong action against the perpetrators of the violence and stated that the confrontation was caused by the use of unapproved pathways. Meanwhile, the BJP has blamed Banerjee for the violence.
Locket Chatterjee, a BJP MP, claimed on Friday that the lives of Hindus in the state are “under threat.”

“It is disheartening. Such visuals emerge from Bengal every Ram Navami and Durga idol immersion. It is not acceptable that the lives of Hindus in Bengal are under threat. When there was violence in Howrah yesterday, Mamata Banerjee was sitting on a 30-hour Dharna,” Chatterjee said, as per reports.

The BJP legislator accused Mamata Banerjee of appeasement politics and demanded her resignation. Anurag Thakur, a Union Minister, also condemned the violence in West Bengal.

“During Mamata Banerjee’s rule, journalists were attacked, and stone pelting was done during Ram Navami processions. If journalists are becoming victims of violence and the State government remains a mute spectator, what can be more shameful than this? The more it is condemned, the less it is…” Thakur said.

Likewise, on Friday, the situation in Howrah’s Shibpur region became violent. A day after arson on Ram Navami, further violence erupted on Friday.