Nupur Sharma comments row: After violence-hit Howrah, internet suspended in THIS West Bengal city

Nupur Sharma comments on Prophet row: After clashes broke out between the police and demonstrators in Howrah district on Friday, internet services were suspended in the entire district till June 13 while Section 144 of CrPC was imposed in several areas including Uluberia, Domjur and Panchla till June 15.

PTI Photo (Flames and smoke rise from a vehicle set ablaze by miscreants in Howrah on Friday)

New Delhi: After the internet was suspended in West Bengal’s Howrah as protests against now-suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders’ remarks on Prophet Mohammad turned violent a day ago, the state government on Saturday (June 11) enforced the same clampdown in parts of Murshidabad district. The internet services have been banned in Murshidabad till June 14 to stop the spread of misinformation, PTI reported. As per the order, the internet will remain shut in Beldanga 1 block covering Beldanga Police Station area and Beldanga 2 block covering Rejinagar and Shaktipur Police Station areas till 6 AM on June 14. 

After clashes broke out between the police and demonstrators in Howrah district on Friday, internet services were suspended in the entire district till June 13 while Section 144 of CrPC was imposed in several areas including Uluberia, Domjur and Panchla till June 15.

The agitation in Howrah took a violent turn on Friday after the demonstrators allegedly torched police vehicles and booths. Hundreds of protestors blocked roads in different parts of the Howrah district and also clashed with the police. A skirmish also broke out between the protestors and the police personnel at Dhulagarh, Panchla and Uluberia when the cops tried to remove the blockade on National Highway-6. The protestors were demanding the arrest of former BJP leaders Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal for their objectionable remarks on the Prophet. 

BJP attacks Mamata Banerjee govt over Howrah violence

West Bengal BJP MP Saumitra Khan on Saturday wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and sought immediate deployment of central forces in violence-hit Howrah district. He alleged that the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government has "failed" to maintain law and order and "allowed the violence to spiral for vested political interests".

Meanwhile, BJP state chief Sukanta Majumdar was arrested under preventive sections today when he was on his way to the Howrah protest site. Section 144 has been imposed in the district after fresh clashes erupted between police and a section of demonstrators at Panchla Bazaar in Howrah.

(With agency inputs)