A meat seller was thrashed on Friday and a BJP worker similarly assaulted on Saturday to allegedly avenge Friday's attack in Matigara block of Siliguri subdivision, leading to questions over the role of police in and around the city.

On Friday morning, a group of youths intercepted Nur Mohammad, a meat seller, while he was carrying meat in a vehicle. Nur, sources said, has been selling meat for years now and brings it from the Naxalbari block.

The attackers, who stopped the vehicle near Balason bridge on NH10, alleged he was carrying beef and thrashed him. Three others in the vehicle, including Nur's grandmother, were assaulted. The attackers then torched the vehicle and left the spot, while shouting provocative slogans.

Police and firemen rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control. The police also initiated a probe and nabbed three persons who are reportedly supporters of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP).

On Saturday, in protest of the attack on Nur, a group of people went to the Matigara police station on Saturday morning and submitted a memorandum, demanding the arrest of all those involved in the incident.

The group left the police station. After some time, allegedly a section of them attacked the house of Amit Gupta, a BJP worker residing at the Tumbajote area of Matigara block. They ransacked the house, hit Gupta and one of his relatives on their heads, and ransacked a shop.

Police reached the area. Raju Bista, the BJP MP of Darjeeling, also went there and met Gupta.

The MP demanded that the police arrest the perpetrators within 24 hours.

Later in the day, VHP leaders announced a 24-hour general strike in Siliguri on Monday in protest of the arrest of their supporters and the attack on Gupta and his family.

Laxman Bansal, VHP’s Bengal and Sikkim general secretary, announced the bandh and told the media that three VHP supporters were arrested in connection with Friday's incident.

“But the police have not done anything after Saturday's attack. We have called the bandh in protest of that,” he said.

Trinamool leaders accused the BJP and the saffron ecosystem of trying to create tension in Siliguri.

“These days, the BJP and its associates are aggressively resorting to divisive politics, but common people will thwart them. The police are doing their job,” said Vedabrata Dutta, the spokesperson of TMC in Darjeeling (plains).

Senior police officers said a police picket has been posted in the troubled area of Matigara. “Two persons have been detained in connection with Saturday's incident. Our officers are probing the incidents, and any attempt to breach the law and order will be firmly dealt with,” said Biswachand Thakur, the DCP (east) of Siliguri Metropolitan Police.

Left protest rally

Saman Pathak, the Darjeeling district secretary of the CPM, reached Matigara on Friday with other leaders and met with the police.

On Saturday, the CPM organised a rally in protest of the attack on the meat seller and stressed on peace and amity.

“We heard about such incidents (attacks on meat sellers) in some other states, but unfortunately, such attacks are also happening here. Surprisingly, the police did not act proactively to stop such incidents. We condemn what happened today (Saturday) as a backlash, but the police have not taken any effective steps,” said Pathak.

He pointed out that after the recent riots in Murshidabad, the police and intelligence wings should be on high alert. "Both attacks were planned, but the attackers could not be stopped. This hints that the police and their wings had no prior information,” he said.

A CPM leader pointed out that even if Nur carried beef, no one could attack him. "There is no ban on beef in Bengal. Some fundamentalists are trying to breach peace. Stringent steps should be taken against them,” he said.