Calcutta HC orders state to control Kurmi community's rail roko protests

The Calcutta High Court has once again stepped in to address the ongoing issue of the Kurmi community's protests, which have severely disrupted rail and road services in West Bengal. The Division Bench of Justice Sujoy Pal and Justice Smita Das has directed both the Railways and the state government to take all necessary measures to control the blockades. This order comes in light of a call by the Kurmi community for another large-scale protest, just ahead of the Durga Puja festival, a move that is expected to cause widespread public inconvenience and economic losses.

According to the High Court, the security arrangements should be implemented as per a previous order issued by the Division Bench of the Chief Justice on September 19, 2023. That order had already declared such protests as "illegal and unconstitutional," and had directed the state to ensure law and order. The court's repeated intervention highlights the seriousness of the situation and the failure of previous attempts to resolve the issue.

The current legal action was initiated by a plaintiff who alleged that the Kurmi community had planned a similar blockade for Saturday in the districts of Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram, and West Midnapore. The community's primary demand is for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status, a long-standing issue that has fueled similar protests in the past. These protests are also reportedly ongoing in the neighboring states of Jharkhand and Odisha, indicating a coordinated regional movement.

The economic impact of these blockades is severe. It has been estimated that the railways are losing a staggering ₹21 crore every day due to the disruption of services. This comes on the heels of similar protests in 2022 and 2023, which also resulted in massive financial damage to the railways and caused significant hardship to commuters and the general public.

In a separate incident on September 29, 2023, the Kurmi community's protest had brought the entire city of Kolkata to a standstill. That demonstration was marked by widespread vandalism and damage to both public and private property, an incident the court is keen to prevent from being repeated.

With the Durga Puja festival approaching, the Kurmi community's threat of an indefinite shutdown of Bengal, Jharkhand, and Odisha has put the authorities on high alert. The community's planned rail and road blockade on September 20 is a direct challenge to the court's earlier orders and could lead to a major confrontation. The Kurmis are not only demanding ST status but also the recognition of the Sarna religion and the inclusion of their Kurmali language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.