Kolkata, June 12
Tension prevailed in the Maheshtala area of South 24 Parganas district, West Bengal, as police crackdown on protesters continued on Thursday. So far, 18 have been arrested.
The arrests were made during a joint operation by the West Bengal Police and Kolkata Police, which started on Wednesday night and continued till Thursday morning in connection with the clashes that broke out on Wednesday afternoon.
While 14 were arrested on Wednesday night only, the remaining four were arrested early Thursday morning, a senior official of the state police confirmed.
However, the overall situation in the Maheshtala area continued to be quite tense, with most of the shops remaining closed even on Thursday morning.
The movement of the people on the road in the locality was much less than on normal days. A huge police contingent, including the personnel of the Rapid Action Force (RAF), continued to be deployed in the area to restore confidence among the people.
Prohibitory orders barring the assembly of a particular number of people at a time have been imposed in the locality.