India, April 17 -- The Calcutta High Court on Thursday directed central paramilitary forces to stay in riot-hit Murshidabad district after the West Bengal government filed a report saying the rioters tried to kill policemen and even snatched a service pistol, lawyers present at the hearing said.

The violence rocked Suti, Raghunathganj, Dhuliyan and Shamserganj towns and adjacent rural areas in Murshidabad's Jangipur sub-division for five days when protests by local Muslims against the newly enforced Waqf (Amendment) Act spiralled into communal attacks.

Lawyers representing the central government told the bench of justices Soumen Sen and Raja Basu Chowdhury that the nine companies of Border Security Force (BSF) and eight companies of Cen...