Plaint against Tipu Sultan Mosque Imam for not removing beacon

May 16, 2017

Kolkata, May 16: A police complaint has been lodged against Tipu Sultan Mosque Shahi Imam Maulana Noor-ur Rehman Barkati - the cleric who recently threatened 'jihad' and refused to take off the beacon from his vehicle - by the mosque's trustee board on Monday, an official said.

"We have lodged a police complaint against the serving Imam, Maulana Noor-ur Rehman Barkati in Bowbazar police station for forcefully snatching away the keys of the mosque's official room," head of the Board, Anwar Ali Shah said over phone.

According to Anwar, the office room was opened in the mosque under direct order of the High Court and is being used to store the official documents.

"The documents of complaints against Imam Barkati is stored in the room. It seems he has taken away the keys to destroy those documents so that it does not reach the trustee board for validation," he alleged.

On reports that Barkati has been sacked as the Imam, Anwar said nothing has been officially announced by the mosque authority.

However, he revealed that a process has been started to terminate him from the post after evaluating the charges against him.

"It is not official yet. However, Barkati is aware that steps would be taken against him for constantly making wrong statements and politicising a religious institution. That's why he is hellbent on destroying the papers," Anwar claimed.

The sources at the mosque said that a deputation would be given to the mosque and the respective police station to remove Barkati from the position of Imam, followed by a public meeting on Tuesday.

"The decision on Barkati would be officialy announced by the trustee board on Wednesday afternoon," the source added.

Barkati, considered close to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, is known for his repeated controversial and provocative comments.

Only last week he had warned of a 'jihad' if India was declared a Hindu Rashtra, and also refused to take off the red beacon from his car saying the privilege was granted to the Shahi Imam by the British government.

He had also drawn flak for commenting that Muslims would "fight for Pakistan if India became a Hindu state".

His comments led to a hue and cry, with the BJP and other Sangh Privar outfits dubbing him "anti-national" and senior West Bengal minister Siddiqullah Chowdhury, regarded as a prominent face of the ruling Trinamool Congress, calling Barkati an RSS agent.

Finally, under pressure from the state government, Barkati was forced to take off the beacon from his vehicle.

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Rajdhani Express Derails, 7 elephants killed after collision in Assam

News Network

December 20,2025

At least seven elephants were killed and one calf injured after a herd collided with the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Assam's Hojai on Saturday morning, leading to disruption of rail services.

The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express struck a herd of elephants, resulting in the derailment of the locomotive and five coaches. No passenger casualties or injuries were reported, officials said.

The New Delhi-bound train met with the accident around 2.17 am, PTI reported. The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express connects Mizoram's Sairang (near Aizawl) to Anand Vihar Terminal (Delhi).

Railway has issued helpline numbers at the Guwahati Railway Station:-

•   0361-2731621
•   0361-2731622
•   0361-2731623

The accident site is located about 126 km from Guwahati. Following the incident, accident relief trains and railway officials rushed to the spot to initiate rescue operations.

Train Services Disrupted

Sources said that due to the derailment and elephant body parts scattered on the tracks, train services to Upper Assam and other parts of the Northeast were affected.

Passengers from the affected coaches were temporarily accommodated in vacant berths available in other coaches of the train. Once the train reaches Guwahati, additional coaches will be attached to accommodate all passengers, after which the train will resume its onward journey.

The incident occurred at a location that is not a designated elephant corridor. The loco pilot, upon spotting the herd on the tracks, applied emergency brakes. Despite this, the elephants dashed into the train, leading to the collision and derailment.

Last month, an elephant was killed after being hit by a train in Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. The incident took place on November 30.

The adult elephant was killed on the spot, and a calf was discovered lying injured beside the tracks.

Over 70 Elephants Killed In Train Collisions Over Last 5 Years

At least 79 elephants have died in train collisions across the country in the last five years, the Environment Ministry had informed Parliament in August.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh had said the figure is based on reports from state governments and Union Territory administrations for the period 2020-21 to 2024-25.

He said that the ministry does not maintain consolidated data on the deaths of other wild animals on railway tracks, including in designated elephant corridors.

Singh confirmed that three elephants, including a mother and her calf, were killed on July 18 this year after being hit by a speeding express train on the Kharagpur-Tatanagar section in West Bengal's Paschim Midnapore district. The incident took place near Banstala between Jhargram and Banstala stations.

The minister said several measures have been taken jointly by the Environment Ministry and the Railways to prevent such accidents.

These include imposing speed restrictions in elephant habitats, pilot projects such as seismic sensor-based detection of elephants near tracks and construction of underpasses, ramps and fencing at vulnerable points.

The Wildlife Institute of India, in consultation with the ministry and other stakeholders, has also issued guidelines titled 'Eco-friendly Measures to Mitigate Impacts of Linear Infrastructure' to help agencies design railways and other projects in ways that reduce human-animal conflicts.

Singh added that capacity-building workshops were conducted for railway officials at the Wildlife Institute of India in 2023 and 2024 to raise awareness on elephant conservation and protection.

A detailed report titled 'Suggested Measures to Mitigate Elephant & Other Wildlife Train Collisions on Vulnerable Railway Stretches in India' had also been prepared after surveys across 127 railway stretches covering 3,452 km.

Of these, 77 stretches spanning 1,965 km in 14 states were prioritised for mitigation, with site-specific interventions suggested.

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