A National Human Rights Commission India (NHRC) team on Friday visited a relief camp in West Bengal's Malda to meet those displaced by the Murshidabad riots.
The team reportedly arrived at the Par Lalpur High School in Malda, where hundreds of displaced people have taken shelter since communal clashes erupted in Murshidabad on April 11 and 12 during protests against the central government's amendments to the Waqf (Amendment) Act.
The Commission, which took suo motu cognisance of the violence, said it decided to send a fact-finding team in view of the "seriousness of the situation" and has sought a detailed inquiry report within three weeks.
Officials confirmed that three people were killed in the violence that spread across Muslim-majority areas like Shamsherganj, Suti, Dhulian, and Jangipur in Murshidabad district.
Several residents, fearing for their lives, fled to neighbouring Malda and are now living in makeshift relief camps.
Meanwhile, the National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar also began a two-day tour of Malda and Murshidabad to assess the impact of the violence on women and inspect rehabilitation efforts, news agency PTI reported.
"We have received reports that women in the affected areas and relief camps are not being treated properly. The NCW has formed an inquiry committee. We will speak to the victims and assess the situation before submitting a detailed report," Rahatkar said in Kolkata before leaving.
The NCW team will spend the night in Malda and head to Murshidabad on Saturday. The panel is expected to meet district officials, victims, and eventually call on the Governor, Chief Secretary, and DGP in Kolkata on Sunday.
Tensions briefly escalated at the Par Lalpur camp in Malda, where angry residents surrounded district officials, alleging that they were being pressured to leave the camp.
"Life in this camp is no better than prison," one of the camp residents said.
"They're trying to force us to return home, but it's still unsafe. We want BSF camps in our localities in Dhulian before we consider going back," he said.
Security has been tightened across the affected areas, with paramilitary forces deployed alongside the state police.
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So far, 274 people have been arrested for alleged involvement in the violence.
The communal clashes in Murshidabad erupted during protests by sections of the Muslim community against amendments to the Waqf Act, which they allege would lead to centralisation and misuse of Muslim charitable properties.
