Mahato pointed out in his letter dated April 13 that areas such as Merhidabad, Marda, Nadia and South 24 Parganas witnessed violence against Hindus, and the state government had a “look” on the Hindu church due to what he called the “appeasement” politics of the ruling Trinimore Congress.
He claimed that more than 86 Hindu houses and shops were recently robbed or destroyed in the Meshidabad area, including a civilian named Hargobindo Das and his son, were murdered. In Jhaubona village, he said, betel leaf plantations are burning in what he calls “targeted economic destruction.”
These are not isolated incidents. Members of Congress said similar unrest occurred between border areas, leaving the “Hindu population vulnerable and silent”.
Mahato refers to the violence erupting in the WAQF (Amendment) Act, which says the mob attacked Hindu houses, public property and even police forces. He added that the Kolkata High Court must intervene and order the deployment of the Central Armed Police Force and stressed the “administrative failure of the state”.
The BJP MP is similar to Kashmiri Pandits in 1990, who warned that similar situations could occur in Bangladesh without immediate measures.
“I most appreciate your urge to consider declaring AFSPA in the West Bengal border area,” he wrote, adding that such a move would help restore law and order, stop future violence and assure Hindus that they have not been abandoned.
Mahato ended the letter with a call for “decisive action to ensure justice, security and the rule of law.”
Meanwhile, Ranaghat BJP MP Jagannath Sarkar also wrote to Shah and urged the Union Home Minister to intervene in the “deteriorating” legal and order situation in the Murshidabad region of West Bengal.
He asked the strengthening of a senior investigation and monitoring team by the Ministry of the Interior and central forces in vulnerable areas.
Sarkar stressed the need for strict legal proceedings against perpetrators to restore peace and safeguard constitutional rights.
