Five more BSF units rushed to Bengal's Murshidabad as violent ‘anti-Waqf Act’ protests leave 3 dead

Tension gripped West Bengal’s Murshidabad district on April 13 as the Border Security Force (BSF) rushed in five additional companies to control spiraling violence over protests against the controversial Waqf (Amendment) Act.

The unrest has already claimed three lives and led to the arrest of at least 150 suspects.

With large-scale arson, vandalism, and direct assaults on security personnel reported, the district remains in a state of heightened alert.

“Since yesterday, four BSF companies were deployed. Today, five more have been sent to volatile areas where fresh disturbances are being reported,” said Nilotpal Kumar Pandey, DIG and PRO of the South Bengal Frontier, BSF.

BSF officers confirmed that intense clashes broke out in several parts of the district, particularly in Ghospara, where security forces were forced to open fire to disperse an aggressive mob. “The situation turned so hostile that we had to fire warning shots. Our vehicles were torched and personnel sustained minor injuries,” said a senior BSF officer, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The flashpoints of violence include Suti and Samsherganj, with fresh unrest flaring up on April 13 as a large crowd advanced toward Mahadevpur in Samsherganj, prompting a swift deployment of BSF troops to the area.

According to officials, BSF units were "directly targeted" in several locations, while local police reportedly faced less resistance in accessing the affected zones.

The Calcutta High Court, taking cognizance of the deteriorating law and order situation, ordered immediate deployment of central armed forces in Murshidabad and other vulnerable regions. “We cannot turn a blind eye to the various reports that have surfaced, which prima facie show vandalism in a few districts of the State of West Bengal,” observed a bench led by Justice Soumen Sen.

The protests, triggered by opposition to the amended Waqf legislation, have snowballed into one of the worst law and order crises in the region in recent months.