Post-Ram Navami, fresh violence hits Bihar, Bengal

Clashes erupted during a Ram Navami procession in which BJP functionaries were among the marchers in Bengal's Hooghly district on Sunday, while embers of last Thursday's violence simmered with skirmishes in Jharkhand and Bihar.
The trouble in Bengal's Rishra town came days after the flare-up in neighbouring Howrah where the authorities were still scrambling to restore peace and normality.
The trouble in Rishra started when the marchers, who included BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh, alleged that stones were hurled at them "near a mosque while they were walking peacefully".

A BJP MLA, Biman Ghosh, was reportedly injured and rushed to hospital, alleged Ghosh, who was in an open vehicle ahead of the rally and was whisked off by his central force guards.
The clashes broke out around 6.15pm as the procession neared the mosque, sources said. Some vehicles were set ablaze and an unspecified number of cops and locals injured. RAF was deployed and additional forces rushed to the spot. Raids were on till late Sunday night to trace the "vandals", with police saying 12 people had been arrested so far.
The trouble reignited a war of words between the governing Trinamool and BJP that had started over last week's Howrah violence.

"Some criminals of a particular neighbourhood started pelting stones at us. Something also fell near me, which appeared like a bomb. The MLA was injured. I was lucky to have survived. After Howrah, the police should have been more alert," Ghosh stated.
Trinamool questioned why only BJP-led rallies were "spiralling into clashes", while some of CM Mamata Banerjee's colleagues accused Ghosh of "provoking" the unrest. "The rally was spearheaded by Ghosh. He is known for provocative statements," said state minister Sashi Panja. Trinamool MP Kalyan Banerjee echoed the allegations.
The government asserted that "no guilty will be spared and the matter is being handled with total alacrity". Governor CV Ananda Bose condemned the violence, saying "the thugs will be crushed with an iron hand" and "mobocracy cannot derail democracy".

In Bihar's Biharsharif, fresh violence erupted Saturday night in which three people suffered bullet injuries and a 25-year-old youth died of his wounds on Sunday.
DM Shashank Shubhankar said efforts were on to identify those who killed the youth. "The situation is peaceful now. Around 12-13 people are undergoing treatment. They were injured in clashes on Friday and Saturday," the DM said. Prohibitory orders remained in place in Biharsharif.
Bihar police said 109 people had been arrested in connection with the clashes over the past few days in Biharsharif as well as Sasaram.
In Sasaram, a controversy broke when home minister Amit Shah's scheduled meeting in the town was cancelled on Sunday by BJP, citing prohibitory orders in force following the Ram Navami clashes.
District magistrate Dharmendra Kumar claimed no such orders had been issued as the situation "was well under control". The DM has show-caused an SHO, Mohd K Khan, who was seen in viral videos announcing the restrictions on March 31.
In Jharkhand, clashes erupted in Sahibganj late Saturday between two groups during the immersion of a Chaiti Durga idol after stones were allegedly thrown on the procession, police said.
Shops were damaged and motorcycles were torched. Many people, including cops, were injured. Sahibganj DM Ram Niwas Yadav said on Sunday the situation "was now under control".
In Gujarat's Vadodara, one person was arrested for allegedly circulating a provocative video about a VHP leader after the Ram Navami violence. A VHP worker was held Saturday over alleged hate speech.