Nadia riots: Scale of destruction immense as police study pattern

Kolkata, May 7: The scale of devastation at the Kaliganj block in West Bengal's Nadia district tells a sorry tale. It has been probably one of the worst communal riots in recent times and the residents have faced nothing short of a nightmare.

Four persons died and seven others were injured in the clash which police said was a result of communal tension.

Although the situation is under control at the moment, the police are taking no chances as there is every chance of the situation turning bad once again.

A scary picture:

A state Intelligence Bureau official from West Bengal says that the situation is extremely volatile. There was a provocation which led to the entire incident. The police are studying the pattern behind the incident, but the priority at the moment is to ensure that peace remains and the violence does not spread.

Eye witnesses say that almost everything has been destroyed in the riots. The reaction by the police was extremely slow and despite the writing on the wall, not much was done to prevent the riot.

The entire incident began when a procession was attacked at the Juranpur village in Nadia. This resulted in violent clashes and the violence spread like wild fire in which 4 persons ended up losing their lives.

Bombs hurled:

What was surprising was that during the clashes there was not just firing but hurling of bombs as well. The warring factions fired at each other and bombs were hurled as a result of which innocents were killed.

The police however point out that they are not sure if the killings were targeted or took place as part of the mindless violence. However it appears that the attackers were well prepared and managed to source weapons and explosives in a jiffy.

Restoring normalcy:

While the police aim to restore normalcy in the region, the rehabilitation work would be a big challenge.

Houses have been gutted in fire, innocents dragged on to the roads and beaten up. There has also been large scale looting in the area. However all those persons who have been affected in the riots were innocent by-standers and not a single one of them was directly involved in the incident, police say.

The police are conducting raids in the neighbouring areas. We are trying to find the perpetrators of the crime. Officials say that the entire operation appeared to be pre-planned. We are on the look out for those masterminds and are confident of nabbing them soon, the officer also informed.