NIA chargesheet names TMC leader’s husband in 2023 Hooghly Ram Navami violence

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a chargesheet in the 2023 Ram Navami violence case in Hooghly district, naming Shakir Ali, former Trinamool Congress MP’s husband and Rishra Municipality councillor, as the alleged mastermind.

Kolkata:  The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had submitted its chargesheet in the 2023 Ram Navami violence in Hooghly district of West Bengal, probe agency officials said.

In the chargesheet filed on Wednesday, NIA had named Shakir Ali, the husband of former and two-time Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member from Arambagh Assembly constituency in Hooghly district, as the mastermind behind the violence.

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Sources aware of the development said that in the chargesheet NIA had claimed that Shakir Ali and his aides planned the unrest over the Ram Navami processions in the district for political gains.

The NIA sleuths arrested Shakir Ali in the Ram Navami violence case in June this year. He was the councilor of Ward number 4 of Rishara Municipality in Hooghly district.

Before arresting him, NIA officials searched his house for several hours.

Shakir is currently out on bail.

In the chargesheet submitted by the NIA a total of 43 people has been named as accused. Of them, 20 were arrested by the state police and two were arrested by the NIA.

Apart from this, 21 more are on the list of accused by the National Investigation Agency. All of them, including Shakir, are currently out on bail.

In the chargesheet, NIA had claimed that that the police had recovered many swords in relation to the Ram Navami violence.

In addition, as per the chargesheet, a large quantity of explosives and gunpowder were also recovered from the residence of another accused in the case, Kamran Qureshi, who was arrested by the NIA sleuths.

It may be noted that Rishra in Hooghly district witnessed unrest in 2023 during the Ram Navami procession. At that time, panic spread in the area due to bomb attacks, vandalism and arson.

The lives of ordinary residents practically came to a standstill.

The situation had reached such a point that the administration had to impose a virtual curfew for a few days to maintain law and order.