Murshidabad riots scripted for political gains: CPM

The CPM on Sunday demanded a judicial probe into the recent communal riots in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district, accusing the ruling TMC and the opposition BJP of colluding to engineer the violence for political gains ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

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Sounding the bugle for the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, CPM state secretary Mohammed Salim, addressing a mega rally of the party’s frontal organisations at the Brigade Parade Grounds, accused the TMC and BJP of indulging in “competitive communalism” to divert attention from issues like unemployment, price rise and corruption.

Key accused in father-son murder held

Kolkata: One of the prime accused in the murder of a man and his son in Murshidabad district was arrested, the police said on Sunday. This was the fourth arrest in the killing of the two at Jafrabad in Shamsherganj. The arrested, identified as Ziaul Sheikh, a resident of Sulitala Purbapara, the neighbouring village of Jafrabad, has been on the run since the crime took place on April 12.

“We want a judicial probe into the Murshidabad riots to bring out the truth. The TMC and BJP are engaged in competitive communalism, which is nothing but a desperate ploy to shift focus from the real issues affecting the common people,” Salim said.

“The BJP and Trinamool Congress are trying to take West Bengal to a situation where fraternity and unity among the people will be lost,” he said.

Claiming that the communal violence in Murshidabad was “scripted”, he said this was an attempt to divide the people over religion for political gains.