Overview
- The highway was blocked at Maheshpur in Beldanga I from about 9 a.m., with tyres burned and sit-in protests that brought traffic to a standstill on the key route.
- Police said the agitation followed reports that a Murshidabad native who had gone to Jharkhand for work had died.
- Protesters demanded punishment for alleged attackers, immediate compensation for the victim’s family, and a permanent mechanism to safeguard migrant labourers.
- Senior officers held several rounds of talks to clear the road, but the blockade remained as demonstrators insisted on a visit and assurances from top administrators.
- Protesters alleged migrants from the district are branded as Bangladeshis and harassed for speaking Bengali, and a BJP leader publicly criticized the state government’s response.