Our Bureau/

Bhagalpur chapter of Bihar Bengalee Association (BBA) has strongly condemned the raising atrocity against Bengali speaking people in this ancient silk city. It urged local administration’s immediately interference for protecting the interests and fundamental rights of  linguistic minatory community members here.

A delegation of local BBA members under the leadership of Ratna Mukherjee, president, and Jayjit Ghosh, secretary of the branch on yesterday called on the inspector general of police, Bhagalpur range, Sushil Man Singh Khopde and urged his immediate intervention in some burning issues like rising criminal conspiracy by some well organized rackets of real estate business mainly to capture the landed properties of Bengali community people in this city.

Ratna Mukherjee narrated how the ruffians for the last 2-3 month have started disturbing Dr Geeta Mozumdar and her sister, Dr Gouri Mozumdar (both aged above 75) to create panic in the minds of the two old ladies. The antisocial elements regularly creating disturbances in front of the nursing home-come residence of the Dr Mozumdar, a noted gynecologist in the city who has been serving her practice here for more than last 50 years. Her sister, Gouri Mozumdar, a retired  teacher from Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University.

“Since Dr Mozundar’s wards are staying outside Bhagalpur, the antisocial elements hatched conspiracy to irritate the old ladies mentally so that they left Bhagalpur to get rid of such unwanted situations and their landed properties either could be captured or could be purchased at a throw away price,” Mukherjee explained.

Bhagalpur branch’s secretary, Jayjit Ghosh pointed out earlier in several instances, the rackets involved in real estate dealers captured many community members’ properties. He said  from seventies on ward such instances were on hick which subsequently spread panic and a sense of insecurity among the community members. “As a  result, this ancient city had to witness massive migration of Bengali folks which ultimately eroded  base of the rich cultural and literacy activists for which the Bengali society at Bhagalpur once known in the country,” Ghosh explained.

He recalled the brutal murder of one Bengali homemaker, Swampa Ghosh last year or the harassment of Shekhar Ghosh, the owner of ‘Paradise’ bakery by the land grabbers. “The same mode of operand was engineered by the land grabbers which Dr Mozumdar has to face today. And  it’s very common practice here. Swampa Ghosh’s family members had to face the same before her murder,” pointed out Nirupam Kanti Pal, former secretary of BBA here.

Tapan Kumar Ghosh, a senior member said Bhagalpur once towered high in the country for its cultural and literary activities, gradually slips in the dark annul of history mainly because of retardation of creativity. “Rabindra Nath Tagore selected Bhagalpur outside of Bengal for establishing Bangiya Sahitya Parisad mainly to fight against the British who separated Bengal. And Tagore preferred Bhagalpur’s creativity and the its potentialities,” he recalled. Referring the manes like Bankim Chandra, Vivekananda   Sarat Chandra Chattopadhay, Ashok & Kishore Kumar, film maker Tapan Sinha and many eminent Bengali characters who were influenced from the soil of Bhagalpur and vis-a vis reflected it in their works, Ghosh said due to erosion in the Bengali society, the city virtually evaporated its creativity.

“No one could consider Bhagalpur without Bengali, the community once not only dominated here in the society but contributed lots here, no one could simple over look it. But very unfortunately the peace loving community members today trapped in litigations or such criminal conspiracy which finally compelled them to left their ancestral place which subsequently has created the vaccume,” said Dr Shanker, a member and a dermatologist here.

Khopde however assured proper safety and security for the community members and said police has started keeping close vigil on the house of Dr Mozumdar. It’s to be mentioned here that earlier the local chapter of Indian Medical Association (IMA) intervened into the incident and urged district administration to take care of the two old ladies. The local police however deputed security for the lady doctor.

“I have been practicing with all my best in the city over last 50 years and received lots of love and affection from the people here. But now I feel insulted with the filthy abuses from the persons who are busy to uproot me from Bhagalpur,” Dr Mozumdar told in a broken voice.

The incident has spread panic among the community members here. But the BBA has decided to face the situation boldly. “After the killing of Swampa Ghosh, her ill-fated husband had decided to left Bhagalpur after selling his ancestral property. But we had added moral support to him and assured to punish the killers of his wife. The case has opened in local court and we extended all our support including giving witness in the case,” told a senior member of BBA, Bhagalpur. He further added that the members have decided to focus such issues besides strengthening cultural and other activities are also on their agenda.