Waqf Act will not be implemented in West Bengal: Mamata Banerjee

The Waqf Amendment Act will not be implemented in West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Saturday amid violent protests in the state particularly in the Muslimmajority Murshidabad districtSo far 118 people have been arrested in connection with the violence that broke out in the district on Friday according to policeRemember we did not make the law over which many are agitated The law was made by the central government So the answer you want should be sought from the central government the CM said in a post on XWe have made our position clear on this matter we do not support this law This law will not be implemented in our state So what is the riot about she askedHer remarks came as fresh violence was reported from Dhulian in Murshidabads Samserganj where one person sustained a bullet injuryAddressing a press conference in Kolkata ADG Law and Order Jawed Shamim said the details of the incident are not available yetHe said the local police may not have been involved in the incident of firing and that this could probably be from the BSF endThese are early reports that we need to crosscheck he saidThe injured person was admitted to a hospital and is out of danger he addedShamim said that on Friday four rounds were fired by the police to control the violence in the districtIn that firing two persons were injured and are under treatment he said maintaining that young men were falling prey to liesSeveral vehicles including police vans were set on fire stones were hurled at security forces and roads were blocked as violence rocked Malda Murshidabad South 24 Parganas and Hooghly districts during protests over the new legislation on FridayDirector General of Police DGP Rajeev Kumar said strong action would be taken against those indulging in violence and the men in uniform will do everything in their power to protect the lives and properties of innocent citizensThe unfortunate incident that happened this Saturday morning may have been triggered by unsubstantiated rumours being spread from various quarters I urge the people not to pay heed to such provocations which are clearly the handiwork of miscreants he saidThis is a fight between good and evil Rumour mongering has to be stopped We will request people not to take the law and order into their own hands We assure them that the police will take the strongest measure against the culprits and protect the lives and properties of the common people he saidThe chief minister urged people to maintain calm and not fall prey to provocationMy sincere appeal to people of all religions please remain calm remain restrained Do not engage in any irreligious behaviour in the name of religion Every human life is precious do not incite riots for the sake of politics Those who are inciting riots are harming society she saidWe do not condone any violent activity Some political parties are trying to misuse religion for political gain Do not give in to their persuasions I think religion means humanity goodwill civilisation and harmony I appeal to everyone to maintain peace and harmony she saidLeader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari meanwhile wrote to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw demanding a probe by the National Investigation Agency NIA into the vandalism of railway property in the districtLet it be known that this was not an act of protest rather a premeditated act of violence an assault on Democracy and Governance by Jihadist forces who seek to spread chaos in order to assert their dominance and sow fear amongst other Communities of our Society he said in a post on XPublic property was destroyed Government Officials felt threatened and an atmosphere of fear and intimidation was created all under the false guise of dissent he addedState BJP president Sukanta Majumdar urged the TMC government to strictly enforce the rule of law in MurshidabadAsserting that when the BJP comes to power in West Bengal such vandalism by a section of minorities will be crushed in five minutes he alleged that the appeasementdriven state administration was not taking appropriate stepsMajumdar the Union Minister of State for Education claimed that the violence might have been orchestrated to divert focus from the spontaneous protests over the Supreme Court invalidating the jobs of 26000 school teachersHindus believe in the true concept of secularism pluralism as they are peaceloving and nonviolent But if efforts are made to drive out the Hindus from certain pockets in Murshidabad where Muslims are the majority ordinary people of Bengal Hindus of Bengal will turn around to save their dignity honour and identity he saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason 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