No broadcasts that 'vitiate the peace and tranquillity of the region': Temporary curbs on news media in Hooghly

Following a fresh round of unrest, the Hooghly district administration in West Bengal has put temporary curbs on the news media. The order, issued by district magistrate Yeluchuri Ratnakara Rao, came into effect at 2.30 pm yesterday and will remain in place till 6 pm on May 17.

Restricting the broadcast of news, Tuesday’s order read: “Any local news (including showing of scroll messages of news items/excerpts) and seditious messages, clippings, recordings of speeches which may vitiate the peace and tranquillity of the region shall not be transmitted/broadcasted by local cable channels, signal distributors, intermediaries and internet service providers operating or transmitting/broadcasting within the Hooghly district.”

Since Sunday, the Telinipara area of the district has seen clashes after the police asked the entire area to maintain lockdown after several people tested positive for coronavirus. When the lockdown was violated, the police barricaded the area and tried to transport the Covid-19 patients to an isolation ward.

The police faced great resistance from locals in the process. Soon after, people from a neighbouring locality arrived, demanding that no one be moved out. They then erected their own barricades around the area, which is when clashes broke out. Crude bombs were hurled, shops were vandalised, and vehicles were destroyed.

The police imposed Section 144 in Telinipara on Tuesday, though violence broke out after that. Mobile internet services were suspended in Chandannagar and Serampore sub-divisions of the district. Thirty-seven people were detained for rioting.

The Bharatiya Janata Party hit out at the Trinamool Congress government, calling it a "communal clash" and a complete breakdown of law and order. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee, however, reportedly criticised the BJP for "trying to instigate communal clashes in the state", PTI reports.

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