A young Muslim man, named Sheikh Nazrul, from West Bengal’s Chandannagr was beaten and killed on December 5. The incident occurred last Tuesday in Chandannagar’s Harijan Palli area in West Bengal’s Hooghly district, where the 40-year-old man Sheikh Nazrul was killed after he was beaten and assaulted on a street, according to a report by The Observer Post. Nazrul was from Chalke Para in Ward 24 of Chandannagar Municipality and used to work in a chemical factory near Delhi Road.
The report details that the police have stated that the attackers confronted Nazrul on the street after which they started beating him. Sheikh Nazrul and his son Rahul were transporting some material through an e-rickshaw when a flower merchant, known as Shanu Chattopadhyay, reportedly suspected Nazrul of being a thief. Chattopadhyay was then joined by some other men who took to attacking Nazrul due to which he was injured severely. His son was able to take him to the hospital however he was pronounced dead after his arrival there and succumbed to his injuries.
(e-rickshaw) through Harijan Palli. At that moment, the flower merchant Shanu Chattopadhyay, also known as Bhola, grew suspicious of Nazrul, suspecting him of theft.
Read the full report by @HiKibria on @TheObserverPost https://t.co/Y2hl5FkbMR
— Meer Faisal (@meerfaisal001) December 7, 2023
In an interview with The Observer Post, Rahul recounted the harrowing experience and the accusations levelled against his father, “My father used to work in a factory along Delhi Road and also engaged in buying and selling old iron parts. This morning, while transporting those parts towards Harijan Palli, the flower merchant Bhola accused my father of carrying stolen goods and began assaulting him. I fled from the spot. Later, upon returning with my uncle, I found my father lying on the road. When we transported him to the hospital, the doctors informed us of his demise.”
The police, led by DC Chandannagar Ishani Paul, reportedly arrived at the scene and have taken in the accused for questioning. A case has been registered based on the family’s complaint, and the investigation is underway.
The following day, West Bengal’s Sonarpur also witnessed an attack on a public meeting organised by the Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR), according to The Observer Post. The ADPR is a human rights organisation in Sonarpur operating on the principle of human rights and democracy. The attack was reportedly by people associated with Hindutva and it quickly turned chaotic when the group allegedly disrupted and attacked the gathering. The state general secretary of APDR, in a social media statement, asserted that armed Hindutva activists had planned to assault their meeting and began chanting provocative slogans like Jai Shri Ram to disrupt proceedings, “40-50 individuals affiliated with Hindutva organisations attempted to disrupt our meeting. The police intervened and stopped them, leading to scuffles. When the situation escalated, the police resorted to charging.”
According to a report, the APDR had organised a public meeting and named the event ‘Black Day’ to voice their protest against the Babri Masjid demolition. However, the event was disrupted when a group of 40-50 individuals attempted to disrupt it by chanting slogans, including Jai Shri Ram’ and Bharat Mata Ki Jai.
Ranjit Sur, the state general secretary of APDR, talked about the incident, stating that, “40-50 individuals affiliated with Hindutva organisations attempted to disrupt our meeting. The police intervened, halting them and leading to scuffles. As tensions escalated, the police resorted to charging.”
According to an essay by Outlook India, there is a resurgence of “centuries old” Islamophobia in West Bengal, contrary to its heritage of shared culture, pluralism, and secular values. The piece observes with insights from Arnab Saha, assistant professor of Bengali at Seth Anandram Jaipuria College in Kolkata that this xenophobia in Bengal is due to the work put in by Hindutva forces especially after the BJP’s 2014 victory in the general assembly. According to Saha, Anti-Muslim sentiments among Bengali Hindu elites have been present since the nineteenth century, and over time, these sentiments have permeated through various sections of Hindu society, extending to middle and even lower castes. Similarly, Sabrang India’s piece on the history of Hindutva narratives in Bengal, notes that the BJP has used misinformation and anti-minority rhetoric to woo voters. This polarisation by the BJP has even led to, what the article notes, Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen saying, “The fanning of the dangerous flames of communal divisions has not occurred as strongly in Bengal since 1946.” In 2022 as well as 2023, West Bengal also witnessed violence and anti-Muslim sentiment during the Ram Navami processions which were organised at the behest of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad. An independent fact-finding report led by former Patna High Court Chief Justice Narasimha Reddy designated the Ram Navami violence 2023 was pre-planned and orchestrated.
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