Chief minister Mamata Banerjee skipped key riot-hit areas during her two-day tour of Murshidabad that ended on Tuesday, prompting shock and disappointment among victims of the April violence.

In Samserganj, she restricted herself to the BDO office to meet 280 riot-hit families where she distributed cheques for compensation. At Suti, she addressed an administrative programme.

Mamata’s decision not to visit the riot-ravaged areas sparked an outcry from both Hindu and Muslim victims.

Bulti Das, a homemaker in Jafrabad, one of the worst-hit villages, said: “Her visit made no difference to us. She came by helicopter and left the same way.”

Bulti’s grievance found an echo in Dhulian resident Golam Mainuddin, shot in the legs while out to buy medicine for his mother. “I’m paralysed and the CM chose to ignore people like us," he said.

Three persons — Haragobindo Das, Chandan Das and Ejaz Ahmed — were killed and at least 15 others suffered bullet wounds. Around 40 police personnel were injured, many homes were set ablaze and shops vandalised. Betbona, Jafrabad and Hijaltala villages, and two wards of Dhulian municipality were badly scarred.

Administrative sources avoided taking Mamata to Betbona or Jafrabad for fear of public outrage, especially over the alleged inaction of cops and the suspected role of some TMC leaders in the violence.

“We had high hopes,” said Chiranjit Mandal of Betbona. “We wanted her to come and hear from us directly how innocent people were attacked without reason. But she didn’t come. We feel abandoned.”

A senior police officer involved in security arrangements said: “Women in these areas have said they don’t Lakshmir Bhandar. They want security and permanent BSF camps as they no longer trust the state police.”

The officer cited an incident on March 17, 2015, when Mamata’s convoy was blocked by protesters on NH12 in Ranaghat following a nun’s rape, as a factor behind the decision to keep her away from ground zero this time.

TMC insiders admitted that fear of embarrassing reactions from residents seemed to have prompted Mamata to skip an in-person visit.

BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari alleged Mamata wasn’t kept away by security concerns, but was boycotted by victims, which the administration “realised”. "The police tried hard to convince people to attend Mamata’s meetings, but they refused,” he told reporters in Salt Lake during a demonstration by riot victims outside the State Human Rights Commission office.

Around 450 victims from Mothabari in Malda and Murshidabad, including relatives of Haragobindo and Chandan Das, gathered on Tuesday to demand a CBI inquiry into the riots.

“She came three weeks after the incident, with 4,000 police personnel, not to meet victims but to hold meetings with those accused of instigating the violence, like the Dhulian Municipality chairman and the Farakka MLA,” Adhikari alleged. “She’s trying to act like a protector now — but she was part of the problem.”

Adhikari added: “Her visit to Suti means nothing. Suti is not Samserganj, it’s not Dhulian, it’s not Mothabari. Her mission failed today...”

He claimed over 900 families had put up black flags in their homes in protest in the riot-hit Murshidabad on Tuesday while 450 families held demonstrations.

Adhikari further alleged: “Only 40 people from Betbona were taken to her meeting — none of them was a real victim. They were given money to pose.”