Clashes erupted in West Bengal during the Ram Navami celebrations, prompting Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to appeal for peace and urge Hindus to safeguard Muslims.
She accused unidentified opposition groups of deliberately entering minority areas to incite violence and tension. Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused the chief minister of orchestrating the recent spate of violence and demanded her resignation.
On Monday evening, two groups clashed in Rishra, pelting stones at trains and disrupting train services. Police used tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. Crude bombs were also thrown, and two police vehicles were set on fire near the railway crossing.
Earlier, the chief minister criticized the organizers of Thursday’s Ram Navami processions in Rishra for deviating from the planned route and taking an unauthorized route to attack a particular community.
The BJP’s national vice-president Dilip Ghosh, who participated in Sunday’s Ram Navami procession, compared the situation in Bengal to that of Bangladesh and Afghanistan.
He claimed the government was unable to manage law and order and was blaming the opposition for its failures. TMC general secretary Kunal Ghosh countered the allegations, saying that BJP leaders were provoking people and creating tension in the state.