Thirteen families of a village in Itahar, North Dinajpur, have been "boycotted socially" by influential villagers after a row over the closure of a road.
On Wednesday, these "boycotted" families lodged written complaints with Itahar police and the BDO's office, seeking help.
Sources said that in December 2024, some village elders planned to block a local road to build a religious structure. Two families from the village — those of Abdul Gaffar and Abir Hossain — objected, filing complaints with various administrative authorities, saying the closure would affect movement.
The administration clearly instructed that the road could not be closed.
Angered by this, villagers convened a salishi sabha (kangaroo court) and imposed a social boycott on the two families.
“Other villagers were instructed not to speak to any member of these two families, shops were told not to sell them goods. They were barred from offering prayers at the local mosque. It was declared that anyone found interacting with the boycotted families would pay a fine of ₹5,000,” said Habibur Rahaman, one of the complainants.
The situation escalated on December 14 this year, after the wedding of Abdul Gaffar’s sister. As 11 other families attended the wedding, another salishi sabha on Tuesday boycotted all these 11 families as well.
Rahman alleged that on Tuesday evening, he was forcibly driven out of the mosque while he was offering prayers.
All the 13 affected families approached the Itahar police station and the BDO’s office on Wednesday with written complaints.
"It seems like we are living in medieval times," said Abdul Gaffar. "First, two families were boycotted. Now, 11 more have been added. So we approached the police and the BDO."
Those accused of announcing the social boycott could not be contacted.
Dibyendu Sarkar, the BDO of Itahar, said he received the complaints. "The matter will be thoroughly investigated,” he said.