Watch Video: WB CM Mamata Banerjee visits Birbhum, meets kin of deceased charred alive in arson

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday visited Bagtui village, Rampurhat in Birbhum to meet the kin of the eight people burnt alive by a mob and to take stock of the situation. The BJP has accused the CM of presiding over a complete collapse of law and order in the state.

Banerjee intercated with the kin of the deceased at Rampurhat on Thursday.

The CM handed over a cheque of Rs 5 lakhs to the kin of those killed in Birbhum violence. The CM further announced that financial aid of Rs 2 lakhs will be given for reconstructing affected houses. "Families of the 10 people who died in fire will be given a job & Rs 5 lakhs", Banerjee added.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal government installed CCTV cameras on Thursday in violence-affected area of Rampurhat, Birbhum in the state, where nine people, including a local leader of the TMC died. This comes after the Calcutta high court on March 23 had directed the installation of CCTV cameras for 24x7 surveillance.

PM Modi on Wednesday described the killings as "heinous" and said those responsible for them should not be forgiven.

Eight people, including two children, were charred to death as nearly a dozen huts were set ablaze in West Bengal’s Birbhum district early Tuesday in a suspected fallout of the murder of a ruling TMC panchayat official, provoking calls by the opposition BJP for imposition of the President’s rule.

Altogether 11 people have been arrested so far, and the West Bengal government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Additional Director General (CID) Gyanwant Singh to probe the incident, state police chief Manoj Malviya said.

A 9-member delegation of BJP MPs including the party’s national vice president Dilip Ghosh, Locket Chatterjee and Arjun Singh met Home Minister Amit Shah in the national capital and sought Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar intervention to punish the perpetrators of the incident.

Several policemen are at the village on the outskirts of Rampurhat town, where many residents have fled, fearing reprisals or arrests. The 10 houses that were set on fire are deserted.

Published on: Thursday, March 24, 2022, 01:30 PM IST