Protests erupted in Kolkata and Malda district on Sunday over the murder of migrant Bengali worker Afrazul Khan in Rajasthan. While a protest march was taken out in Kolkata by civil society members and rights activists, two such processions took place in Malda.
In a video which surfaced on Thursday, Khan, a resident of Malda district, was seen being hacked and set ablaze by a man identified as Shambhulal Raigar, who accused him of being involved in “love jihad.”
In Malda, two protest marches were taken out by rights activists at Syedpur village, where Khan used to reside, and another at Kaliachak block. Both the rallies were organised by the rights organisation, Bangla Sanskriti Mancha. More than 1,000 people took part in the rallies demanding death sentence for Raigar.
“Our protest is against the radicalisation of a section of the country on religious grounds. Fundamentalist forces are threatening to disrupt communal harmony,” Samirul Islam, president, Bangla Sanskriti Mancha, said. The protesters alleged that “anti-Muslim rhetoric due to false propaganda of love jihad and cow vigilantism” is creating a “dangerous situation” for Muslims. “The entire village of Saidpur, across religious lines, stands in support of Khan’s family. We will not allow communal forces to execute their divisive agenda,” said Shyam Das, a local rights worker, at Saidpur.
In Kolkata, the protesters urged the Rajasthan government to ensure that the case is fast tracked and the accused awarded “exemplary punishment.” The protest march in Kolkata was taken out from Jadavpur on the southern fringes of the city.
