A South Bengal State Transport Corporation (SBSTC) bus was vandalised and set afire by a group of people in South Dinajpur on Monday.

The bus was on its way from Balurghat to Kalna in East Burdwan. The bus was attacked when it reached Partipara, which is under the jurisdiction of Bansihari police station.

“The attack was carried out by a group of adivasis. They asked the driver, conductor and the passengers to get down. After they disembarked from the SBSTC bus, the
group vandalised the vehicle and torched it,” said a police officer.

A fire engine from Buniadpur doused the flames.

Some private transporters decided not to run their vehicles along the Malda-Balurghat route after the arson. The police were deployed in Partipara.

The Adivasi Joutha Mancha had called a 12-hour strike in the South
Dinajpur district on Monday in protest against the rape of and attempt to murder a minor girl.

“They, however, called off the strike yesterday afternoon following discussions with police and administrative officials. Since this morning, life has been normal across the district. We fail to understand why the government bus was attacked,” the police officer said.

Representatives of the Mancha, the apex boy of adivasis in South Dinajpur, said they had no connection with the attack.

The police have registered a case and started a probe.