The West Bengal administration has shifted into high gear following unprecedented violence in Malda over the exclusion of 1.7 million names from the supplementary voter list. Chief Secretary Dushyant Nariala has summoned all DMs and SPs for an emergency virtual meeting to review the law and order situation ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections.

The intervention comes after Supreme Court Chief Justice Surya Kant directed the Election Commission to hand over the probe to central agencies like the CBI or NIA. The apex court took a grim view of the incident where seven judicial officers were held hostage by a mob in Kaliachak for several hours.

The police have arrested the prime instigator, Mofakkerul Islam, associated with AIMIM, from Bagdogra Airport. He is accused of delivering a provocative speech while standing atop a car bonnet, which triggered the blockade of National Highway-12 and the subsequent attack on officials. With the Election Commission issuing strict mandates following a high-level meeting in Delhi, the state administration is under immense pressure to restore normalcy and ensure a peaceful polling environment.