Over 12,000 people, including migrant workers and Adivasis, from hundreds of villages of Birbhum district, marched through Suri on Monday, demanding an end to political violence that has affected rural livelihoods.

The march was followed by a deputation to the Birbhum district magistrate. Bangla Sanskriti Mancha, a platform that works for migrant worker welfare, which organised the event said it was a call for peace in the district that had seen a series of political clashes, including murders and recoveries of crude bombs, in the recent past.

“Birbhum is a district of peace and culture. The sudden rise in cases of political violence is now impacting the poor rural populace. We urge all political parties to put an end to such violence,” said Samirul Islam, the president of Bangla Sanskriti Mancha.

“We witnessed political violence in the 2018 panchayat polls when villages were terrorised by armed goons. We want peace as panchayat polls are again at the doorstep. Even in the Bogtui massacre (last March), the victims were from poor families,” he added.

Birbhum witnessed fierce violence during the 2018 panchayat polls the ruling dispensation allegedly put up resistance to stop opposition parties from filing nominations, resulting in uncontested victory in 84 per cent seats.

A large number of Trinamul leaders also believe that violence in the 2018 rural polls gave the BJP the leeway to win over 18 out of 42 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Monday’s rally chocked Suri town for over three hours from 12.30 pm.

Many expressed surprise at the event in Birbhum district that now appears to be facing a political vacuum following the arrest of Trinamulleader Anubrata Mondal by the CBI in the multi-crore cattle smuggling case.