Opposition parties on Wednesday said Calcutta High Court's verdict to deploy central forces during the Hanuman Jayanti rallies on Thursday showed the failure of state police to handle communally sensitive situations in Bengal.

Welcoming the court's order, Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar said he hoped that the guidelines laid down by the court had an all-encompassing effect and didn't apply to festivals like Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanti only.

"The violence wasn't led by everyone. It was initiated by Trinamul goons and those who rig elections for the ruling party," he said.

"The Mamata Banerjee government should have sought help from central forces by now. This verdict is a lesson for Mamata on how to run the administration impartially. The people (of Howrah and Rishra) do not have confidence, especially in the police. The public has demanded the deployment of central forces," Majumdar said.

CPM's state secretary Md Salim blamed both Trinamul and the BJP for the recent skirmishes in Bengal. He said it was a technique used by the English colonisers to divide the Indian population along religious lines whenever there was a sign of upheaval, and added that Mamata was using the same strategy to save herself right now.

"Mamata Banerjee is working at the behest of the RSS and the BJP to engineer polarisation among the people of the state at a time the electorate has completely lost faith in her. Corruption and misgovernance have opened the eyes of the people of the state and this is why Trinamul and the BJP have resorted to polarisation," he said.