West Bengal Police arrest two for alleged communal incitement

West Bengal Police has arrested two persons for allegedly pasting an image of the Pakistani flag on the wall of a railway station in the North 24 Parganas district and writing 'Hindustan Murdabad' to engineer communal disturbances, a senior officer said on Thursday.

Chandan Malakar (30) and Progyajit Mondal (45), both described as active members of a political party and associated with the fringe outfit Sanatani Ekta Manch, were apprehended on Wednesday night in the Bongaon area, police added.

The duo confessed to pasting the poster flag and writing "Hindustan Murdabad" on the wall of a toilet near Akaipur railway station under the jurisdiction of Gopalnagar police station, the officer added.

According to police, the accused intended to provoke communal unrest by making the image public and attributing it to another community or group.

However, the plan was thwarted through timely intervention, police added.

"Yesterday night, a Pakistani National flag was found to be pasted on the walls of a washroom beside Akaipur railway station under Gopalnagar PS. Investigation revealed that this was willfully done by one Chandan Malakar (30) and Progyajit Mondal (45), both local residents and active members of a political party as also of Sanatani Ekta Manch," Bongaon police said in a post on X.

"They have confessed to the act and revealed that they had planned to write 'Hindustan Murdabad and Pakistan Zindabad' on that wall to create communal disturbances in the area. Both have been arrested in a specific case. Further investigation is on," it added.

"We shall spare no efforts to bring to book those who are hatching such conspiracies to trigger communal unrest," the post said.

Twenty-six people, including 25 tourists, were killed in a terror attack at Pahalgam in Kashmir on April 22, triggering a global outrage.

Different political parties and the Union government have referred to the alleged role of Pakistan-based agencies in sponsoring terror in Kashmir, but the neighboring country denied its role.

The ruling TMC in Bengal has cautioned against any attempt by certain right-wing fringe groups to disrupt law and order and instigate violence by flagging the Kashmir attack and called for a united effort to fight terrorism.