More than a month after riots broke out in Murshidabad, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee set foot in the district on Monday — her first visit since the violence. The delay, she said, was intentional.
"I could have gone to Murshidabad earlier, but if there is no peace and stability there, we should not go and disturb. Stability has returned to Murshidabad long back. Today, I am going there," Banerjee said, just before beginning her two-day visit.
While the administration claims normalcy has been restored, residents in areas like Dhuliyan—where Banerjee will go on Tuesday—are still reeling from the aftershocks of the unrest. “Tomorrow, I will visit violence-hit Dhuliyan and give compensation to people whose houses and shops were damaged,” she added.
But Banerjee didn’t stop at promises of relief. She launched a direct attack on the BJP-led central government, accusing it of stoking communal tensions and failing in its duty to protect the nation’s borders. “The Centre is spreading communal hatred. They have failed to protect the country's border,” she said.
She also claimed that people affected by the riots were being kept from meeting her. “The families affected by recent violence in Murshidabad were being prevented by the saffron camp from meeting me,” Banerjee alleged.