PTI, SILIGURI, MAY 20, 2025 : Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said that incidents of violence make people suffer but provide politicians opportunities to exploit the situation.
Mamata also said that a number of items posted on social media contained content intended to spread misinformation, divide people, and trigger violence. Though the Chief Minister did not mention any specific incident, parts of the state’s Muslim-majority Murshidabad district witnessed communal violence last month, leaving three people dead.
“Those who take part in violence do not want something good to happen to common people. If there is a riot, there will be vandalism, houses will be destroyed, and people will be killed,” she said.
The Chief Minister was speaking at a public distribution programme in Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar districts, and the Siliguri subdivision in the northern part of West Bengal.
“If there is a riot, politicians get a chance to exploit the situation. I do not want any riot. I want peace and relief; I want strength. I want people to be free from any fear,” she said.
Areas such as Shamsherganj, Suti, Dhulian, and Jangipur in Murshidabad district witnessed riots amid protests against the central government’s amendments to the Waqf Act. Many people fled their homes and took shelter in camps in the neighbouring Malda district.
Governor C. V. Ananda Bose has submitted a report on the riots to the Ministry of Home Affairs, stating that the “twin spectre of radicalisation and militancy” poses a serious challenge to the state.
During Tuesday’s programme, the Chief Minister asked people to keep in mind that “maximum posts on social media are fake. Those who post them do it with a poisonous mindset only to earn money.”
Without naming anyone, Mamata said she supports those who are trying to do good for the people, but not those with malicious intent to create differences by telling lies and spreading canards.
The Chief Minister is on a three-day administrative tour of the districts in the northern part of the state.
