Before violence in Murshidabad, warning signs on social media

Senior officials from the state police and the district administration, as well as residents The Indian Express spoke to, said that several outfits had called rallies to protest against the new law. The first sign of trouble was on April 8, when protesters clashed with police in Umarpur on National Highway 12 and torched two police jeeps.

“When the first incident of violence was recorded, police used tear gas and baton charge to control the situation,” an officer said.

But April 11 was different. That day, NH-12 became a war zone of sorts, with mobs burning buses, private vehicles, police  jeeps and kiosks in Sajurmore and Dakbunglow areas. Simultaneously, communal violence spiralled in villages such  as Shamshergunj, Dhulian and Suti. While father and son Harogobindo Mondol and Chandan Mondol were hacked to death in Jafrabad after being dragged out of their home by a mob, in Surjarmore, three youths sustained bullet injuries when police fired to control the situation. One of the youths, Ejaz Ahmed, succumbed a day later.

According to district officials and police personnel, in the run-up to the violence, social media and WhatsApp groups had been abuzz with misinformation and provocative messages.

“Messages meant to provoke — like land, religious places and even burial grounds would be taken away — were circulated. An impression was given that people’s right to worship will be hampered,” said a senior police officer. “Simultaneously, several fake social media accounts cropped up to amplify this misinformation.”

A resident from the same village as Ejaz Ahmed said thousands of youth were mobilised for the rallies: “Many of the youths work in cities but were back for Eid. Ejaz, in fact, worked in a Chennai hotel and was supposed to leave on April 13.”

Though the protests on April 11 were initially peaceful, things quickly got out of control when protesters blocked the Sujarpur and Dakbunglow crossings, with miscreants indulging in arson of public and private property.

“We were targeted by a mob of thousands who had stones, lathis and petrol. While we were tackling the violence on NH-12, communal violence (in villages) started. There was huge mobilisation, which is why it took us time to control the violence inside villages. We had to fire four rounds at Sujarpur Crossing to control the mob,” said a senior officer.

Ram Kumar Mondol (65), a resident of Bedbona, which was one of the worst hit, recalled, “Our village was attacked on Friday evening. On Saturday, between 10 am and 1 pm, the mob vandalised houses, looted valuables and set fire to homes. My house is charred. Most of the villagers have fled to Malda after crossing the river.”

Speaking to The Indian Express, Javed Shamim, ADG (law and order), said, “We are not just looking for stone peltors and arsonists but also those who instigated the mob. Those behind this violence will not be spared. There was a pattern.”

“Rumour mongering is still the main problem. Once you put misinformation on WhatsApp groups, it spreads quickly. That is why we shut down the Internet,” Shamim said. “For the first couple of nights, there was so much rumour mongering that our officers were busy handling phone calls. The area is peaceful now, and we want everything to normalise soon.”

“We are not ruling out the role of fundamentalist groups. There is also the possibility of miscreants not from the area or even this district. The area is on the border with Bangladesh. Also, Jharkhand is 6 kilometres away. Looting was one of the motives of the miscreants, ” Shamim said.

ADG Supratim Sarkar, too, said action is being taken against rumour mongers, and 1,093 fake social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram and X have been blocked.

“We have formed a special investigation team regarding the murder of the father and son. Two persons have been arrested in the case. Those directly or indirectly connected with the murder will be arrested,” said Sarkar.