Prohibitory orders extended as tension continues in Koitorabari village over defacing of idol

Prohibitory orders, imposed in West Tripura's Jirania subdivision on Monday after violence in the area over the defacing of the idol at a Kali temple, have been extended up to August 31^st.

A large contingent of the Central Reserve Police Force, the Tripura State Rifles (TSR) and state police have been deployed at Koitorabari in West Tripura district after the unidentified assailants torched at least 16 houses, and burnt several vehicles in nearby areas late on Sunday night, leaving four persons injured in wake of the vandalism.

Director General of Police, Intelligence, Anurag Dhankar, West Tripura District Superintendent of Police, Kiran Kumar K, and District Magistrate Vishal Kumar have visited the tension-ridden areas, 12 km from here and senior police officials are camping in the area.

An official said on Tuesday night that the West Tripura district administration has extended the prohibitory order in the trouble-torn Jirania subdivision under Section 163 of the BNSS.

“As per information received from the Superintendent of Police, West Tripura, there is still an apprehension of breach of peace and tranquillity, danger to human life and property, obstruction and injury to persons under Jirania subdivision. I am satisfied that there are sufficient grounds for imposing further restrictions on movement of people to prevent any untoward incident and to prevent a breach of public peace and tranquillity and imposition of prohibitory order under Section 163 of the BNSS, 2023 is urgently required in the entire Jirania subdivision till August 31," the DM's order read.

Transport and Tourism Minister Sushanta Chowdhury, who is the local MLA, visited the affected areas and urged the people to maintain calm and communal harmony.

As opposition Congress and CPI(M) accused the ruling BJP of exploiting communal tensions for political gains over the incident, BJP’s state General Secretary, Amit Rakshit, urged the opposition parties to refrain from politicising such sensitive issues, especially when the state is grappling with the aftermath of a devastating flood that has affected a large section of the population.