Suspended TMC MLA Humayun Kabir on Saturday laid the foundation stone for a mosque modelled on Ayodhya’s Babri Masjid at Rejinagar in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district. The event was held under heavy security.
Kabir cut a ceremonial ribbon in the presence of visiting clerics as crowds raised the slogan “Nara-e-Takbeer, Allahu Akbar.” Thousands of people had gathered at the venue since morning.
Police, RAF and central forces were deployed across Rejinagar and the neighbouring Beldanga area to maintain law and order. The administration increased security after Kabir announced the event earlier this month, drawing political criticism and raising concerns of communal tension.
Kabir was suspended from the Trinamool Congress earlier this week for what the party described as “communal politics.” Despite the suspension, he went ahead with the foundation-laying programme.
He chose December 6 for the ceremony, the anniversary of the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, a date that remains sensitive across the country.
