Author: Ranjit Roy
Publication: Organiser
Date: August 24, 2008
URL: http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=251&page=11
Hindus in West Bengal are now under attack
from Muslim fundamentalists, who are mostly Bangladeshi infiltrators, with
an active support from the ruling CPM. The communists in the state are desperate
to woo Muslims after their humiliating defeat in the recent Panchayat and
civic body elections. The communists believe that the state government's agricultural
land grab policy for industry has alienated rural Muslims from the party and
is responsible for poll debacles. The party and its government are now liberally
distributing favours to Muslims in the state such as setting up of Muslim
religious university, named Alia University, in Kolkata's Muslim populated
area Park Circus. The Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has offered
government financial assistance only to Muslim students seeking higher education.
Mamata Banerjee's Trinamul Congress is not lagging behind in Muslim appeasements.
She has announced that village Panchayats and Panchyat Samities won by her
party in South 24 Parganas district will be run by local Muslims only.
Emboldened by the appeasement policy of the
ruling party as well as the main Opposition party in the state, a section
of Muslim fundamentalist outfits is gearing up for unprecedented attacks on
Hindus in South Bengal districts. The first major attack was reported in Gangasagar,
the holy confluence of the river Ganga and Bay of Bengal on June 12 this year.
About 200 Hindu pilgrims were assembled there for a holy dip at the confluence
and listened to discourses on Hindu religious texts by leaders of Hindu Samhati
Manch. The peaceful Hindu assembly was attacked by a frenzied 3000-strong
Muslim mob led by a local CPM leader Sheikh Ismail. Like infamous Godhra train
burning incident in Gujarat, the heavily armed Muslim goons set fire to bamboo
pavilion erected for the pilgrims assembled in the evening to listen to religious
discourses. The goons also set fire to Vishwa Hindu Parishad's guest house
where some pilgrims had taken shelter. The VHP guest house was badly damaged
due to fire and ransacking. Strangely, the police remained onlookers during
the murderous attack on Hindu pilgrims and later arrested only the leaders
of Hindu Samhati Manch and a few injured pilgrims. It is really a shame for
Bengal's media that suppressed the incident to appease the ruling CPM and
its Muslim stooges. It was only the Bengali weekly Swastika that came out
with detail reports and pictures. The West Bengal unit of VHP had also organised
demonstration in protest. It may not be known to many outside West Bengal
that the sacred Gangasagar Island is now dominated by Muslim majority population
migrated from Bangladesh illegally thanks to the CPM's policy of Muslim appeasement
only to get their votes.
The second major attack on Hindus was reported
on July 8 when Swami Punyalokananda, a monk of Ramakrishna Order and president
of Ramakrishna Ashram at Gorehat under Joynagar police station in South 24
Parganas was stripped and beaten up by CPM goons. Revered Swamiji is a Hindu
social reformer who was initiated in sannyas by Swami Gambhirananda Maharaj,
the 11th president of Ramakrishna Math and Mission, Belur, Howrah. Swami Punnyalokananda
is devoted for the upliftment of the poor and underprivileged people at Gorehat
since he has taken over as the head of the Ashram. Swamiji was trying hard
to start a free coaching centre for the primary school boys and homeopathic
dispensary in the Ashram campus. But Mohammed Abdur Ali, a local CPM leader
and his associates have planned to set up a country liquor shop in the Ashram
campus capturing the Ashram room for coaching students and the dispensary
just by flexing their muscle power.
The local Muslim goons, led by the CPM leader
Abdur Ali, attacked Swamiji with iron rods and lathis and tied him with a
tree before stripping him off his saffron robes and beat him mercilessly till
he became senseless. This ghastly scene was witnessed by hundreds of local
people as the attack was made by the Muslim goons in the morning. But none
came forward to save Swamiji fearing reprisal from the local Muslim goons
sheltered by the CPM bosses. The police came to the spot only after the Muslim
fanatics had satisfied themselves by blood-shed of a peaceful Hindu monk.
Strangely, again, the police did not arrest a single culprit so far except
registering a general diary (No. 168/08) about the attack on Swamiji at the
Joynagar police station. Swamiji had many injuries in his body including scull.
Some devotees of Swamiji took him to Kolkata's SSKM government hospital for
C.T Scan of brain and necessary treatment. Swamiji is now out of danger. Swamiji
had earlier met the District Magistrate and the District Superintendent of
Police apprehending murderous attacks on him and on the Ashram and requested
them in writing for protection. But they did not take steps to protect the
Hindu monk mainly due to fearing backlash of the Muslim fundamentalist groups
and red eyes of the ruling communists.
The two successive barbaric incidents and
complete police inaction led to a panic among peace-loving Hindus all over
West Bengal. The incidents have clearly showed that the CPM has adopted a
tactic of torture against Hindus only to win the hearts of the Muslims to
regain their support in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections slated for early
next year.
