Kolkata Islamists protesting against insulting Pakistani cricketer!

What the metropolis of Kolkata witnessed today is not anything new these days – people just went on the rampage throughout the town, and the players in this chronicle are much known as well – Islamists, determined ever to make use of any issue and thus, hold the state to ransom. How can the use of a picture, published on Monday in t2, the entertainment supplementary of Kolkata-based English daily The Telegraph, be avoided then? The picture portrayed nude image of a model holding a frame of Lord Vishnu (face replaced with that of Sachin Tendulkar) and a Pakistani cricket player (in green dress with the cricket team’s star insignia ) performing a ‘sajda’ before it.

According to Islamists, such a portrayal happens to be the worst case of defilement of Islam and it can’t be allowed to go on. And what happened next is known to us already.  There was a din throughout Kolkata and outskirts of the metropolis. It has also come to the knowledge that Islamists in different parts of Bengal, especially 24 Paraganas (North) and Howrah, took active part in the saga of preserving faith. However, as expected, Raja Bazar and Park Circus area, traditional of Muslim bastions in Kolkata, proved to be worst affected.

But there is a question as well. What is foremost reason behind this resentment?  While there are enough reasons for Hindus getting infuriated (the prime being doctored image of Lord Vishnu, face being replaced with that of Sachin Tendulkar and holding a cricket bat, a cricket ball, a trophy and a helmet as well), Islamists took the cudgel of responsibility to resent.

Without doubt, Islamists would not express infuriation of Hindus. What irked them then?  Was it the “sajda” before an idol only or the humiliation of a Pakistani cricketer or the trouncing of Pakistan by India in Asia Cup? We are yet to know the answer.

Expectantly Bengal administration is also groping in darkness still of the basis of this untoward development. What do we consider that this is culmination of the three said factors (clubbed meticulously) and thus to flex muscles and comprehend the strength of administration.

Even if The Telegraph has already made an apology in public stating, “A tweet by @iPoonampandey was reproduced in t2 on March 19 because of a technical error. The Telegraph had no intention to hurt the sentiments of any community. We apologise for publishing the tweet,” the issue refuses to end here.

We do believe that each person has the right to comply with his/her religious views and also to protest if it is assailed at any time. But any effort to derail social life for poking fun at demoralized Pakistan cricket team for its defeat to India is anti-national or an act of treason without a shred of doubt.     

Can the Bengal administration be counted on still to express the main factor of resentment in clear terms?

Islamists stop Krishna arati in Deganga

What’s next?

How is Deganga at the moment?  This single question does perturb individuals at times and there are, indeed, enough reasons behind it. It was the month of September, 2010 when the name of Deganga rocked the Indian scenario – witnessing the worst form of persecutions on Hindus by Islamists. And even after deployment of security forces by the then Bengal government to quell such ominous developments, nothing fruitful did happen. Nevertheless, after lots of hues and cries then the ominous situation for Hindus there did improve but it has never been stable thus far. And the recent harrowing experiences of Hindus depict once more that nothing has changed in Deganga.

To be precise, soiree musicale of Islamists, every year, becomes a source of trouble for Hindus in Deganga. The rendezvous takes place in Deganga market altogether and hence, daily rituals (like arati) in the local Radha Krishna temple (located in the area where soiree takes place) are brought to an end by Islamists forcefully. Now, to steer clear of any such incident this year (soiree musicale happening on March 19 and 20), Hindus appealed to the local police station weeks ago to adopt apposite measures to end any form of animosity. Similar letters were submitted to various echelons of administration in addition.   

The local police, hence, convened a meeting with Hindu and Muslim representatives on March 18, 2012 in the evening and there was a decision already that 4 Hindus and 2 Muslims would take part in it. But when Hindus went to the police station a large gathering of Muslims was perceived there. Being questioned, the Officer-in-Charge assured that 2 Muslims would participate. But to the utter dismay of Officer-in-Charge, 8 Muslims participated in it. It was decided there that Hindus would do arati in the Radha Krishna temple between 6.00 and 6.40 pm on the next two days. Muslims, present in the meeting, affirmed maintenance of the same diktat.   

But all hopes of Hindus got smashed at 6.25 pm, March 19, 2012, when Islamists forcefully stopped the arati. Being questioned, they replied that any such act was blasphemous for their faith. And what followed next was the blatant use of foul languages against Hindus.

Hindus, next, went to the police station to lodge a formal complaint against this. When the official complaint was being written, hundreds of Muslims gheraoed the police station and some of them entered OC’s chamber vehemently even. The OC turned out to be helpless and through a personal talking, he asked Hindus earnestly to alter the time of arati to the early evening – between 4 – 5 pm. Nevertheless, he didn’t forget to give verbal assurance that a definite process would be found out soon to solve such crises permanently.

On Tuesday the arati took place between 4 to 5 pm.

But the verbal assurance of OC is leading to skepticism only and this is not unfounded at all.  What can an OC do, especially, when the administration proves to be helpless?

Is Deganga in Bengal, India still or whether it is a free area in the global map?