The recent murders of an RSS supporter and his family in Murshidabad’s Jiaganj has sparked outrage with West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar condemning the killings as “dastardly and barbaric” and asking the State’s Director General of Police (DGP) to provide him an urgent update on the situation.
The bodies of 35-year-old Bandhu Gopal Pal, a school teacher and regular participant at the Sangh’s weekly Milan events, his wife and eight-year-old child were recovered from his residence on October 8. On Thursday, a fact finding team of the RSS and the BJP including State president Dilip Ghosh visited Jiaganj and attended the final rites of the deceased.
RSS State secretary Jishnu Basu said the fact finding team had been assured of action by the police and added that based on initial reports there appeared to be no ‘political motive’ to the killings. “What is surprising is that even two days after the incident, police has not been able to arrest the culprits,”Mr. Basu told The Hindu . “This reflects poorly on the law and order situation in the State,” he asserted.
A press statement from the Raj Bhawan in Kolkata said the Governor had “appropriately flagged the issue to the DGP and Chief Secretary for an urgent update on the situation”.
“The incident, according to the Governor, has shocked the conscience on account of its enormity. This is reflective of intolerance and worrisome law and order situation,” the Governor’s office added in the statement.
Speaking to journalists, Tanmay Sarkar, Additional Superintendent of Police, Lalbagh subdivision, said that it was premature to comment on the motive. “We have inspected the scene of crime and it appears that the perpetrators of the crime were known to the victim as there was little or no resistance,” Mr. Sarkar said.
The police also said that they had recovered a note from the house, which seemed to have been written by Pal’s wife and suggested some dispute in the family.
Meanwhile, the murder triggered an uproar on social media. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra, in a tweet, posted a video of the scene of crime and said the murders have “shaken my conscience”.
Political violence in other parts
Political violence continued to rock other parts of West Bengal, even as the residents of Kolkata and the rest of State indulged in Durga Puja festivities. While a 38-year-old BJP worker sustained bullet injuries at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas on Thursday, Sheikh Farid, a Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader was shot at in Amdanga in North 24 Parganas district.
On October 8, 35-year-old Raju Kurmi, a TMC supporter, was shot dead at Kachrapara in North 24 Parganas district. And a day earlier, a well known TMC leader Kurban Sheikh was killed at Panskura in Purba Medinipur district. In most of these cases, supporters of the victims have blamed either rival political parties or factions in the same party.
