Simulation Game: Crisis Management-Chapter 343 - 169: Escalating Conflict

In fact, this is not the first time a riot has erupted in West Bengal.

As early as May 3, 2021, after the election results were announced in West Bengal, India, a large-scale riot broke out, with violence being particularly severe in at least six regions of the state. Homes of about 100 political workers from both parties were attacked and destroyed. According to reports from the British Broadcasting Corporation, at least 17 people died in the clashes, and many were injured. This is the famous 5.3 India Riot Conflict.

Fatima, who is working in Assam, knows the horror of riots all too well.

In 2019, the state she was in experienced a large-scale riot that lasted a week. At that time, the Central Cabinet Government urgently mobilized 50,000 troops to suppress it with all their might. The Eastern Command of the Indian Army dispatched a total of 36 battalions to forcibly quell the riot.

This is also why the Assam government previously hesitated to let the army intervene in rescue efforts, because there has already been bad blood between the military and the civilians.

However, the situation in front of them is far more complicated than simple civilian clashes.

The side Gu Ji was on had an army, while the local villagers’ side had the district government and police. This means that the riot could escalate into a military and police conflict at any time!

Historically, whenever a country erupts in military and police conflict, the consequences are unpredictable.

This is why Gu Ji immediately controlled Marlo’s gun, because both the military and the police are on edge. If gunshots were heard, it could easily escalate into full-scale crossfire.

At that point, if a bullet swept through, at least a dozen villagers would be dead or injured, and Gu Ji and his team would bear huge responsibility!

But standing idly by and not resisting is not an option either.

The armed villagers in front of them have ferocious expressions, with eyes glaring, eyebrows raised, faces bulging with veins, and they are shouting angrily. Especially the few strong men at the front, their eyes fixed intently on them, with a hauntingly threatening and cruel gaze under the light and shadow, making one’s hair stand on end.

If incited by emotions, if seven or eight hundred villagers charged all at once with sticks, even without dying, one would be left crippled.

Through several interactions, Swaraj and Marlo had also witnessed Gu Ji’s capabilities, agreeing to let him temporarily take command. However, for safety, Marlo still ordered a soldier to take a military tactical helmet from the equipment bag.

Gu Ji put on the protective gear, grabbed a waterproof megaphone, and took the initiative to step out from the back of the pickup truck.

He first spread his hands to indicate that he was no threat, then pressed the megaphone button and shouted:

"Everyone, don’t panic. I am Vidhi Dali, a disaster relief commissioner dispatched by the Central Cabinet. We have not come to clash with you but to address the safety hazards of the river dam and to protect your lives and property!"

"Bullshit! You’re just a liar!"

"Right! Don’t be deceived by his flowery words! Drive them out!"

"Get out!"

From the crowd, a curly-haired Indian youth shouted emotionally, hurling another dark object at Gu Ji’s head.

"Vidi!"

"Don’t come over yet!"

Upon hearing Fatima’s startled exclamation, Gu Ji hurriedly stopped her while quickly dodging, his agile figure in the rain akin to a nimble leopard, protecting his face and neck with his arms, instantly avoiding the thrown object.

It turned out to be a bottle.

Only then did Fatima and the others breathe a sigh of relief.

In truth, facing a group of emotional villagers, Gu Ji, who always adhered to the "danger plus one" principle, was certainly always on guard and prepared.

Gu Ji silently took note of the curly-haired youth who attacked him, remaining unfazed by the bottle, and continued to calmly shout:

"Everyone, remain calm. I know you are reluctant to believe me, but at least trust the Cabinet and the country. The recent rescue in Assam is the best example. I was personally involved, and you can search any news article online. If the state hadn’t acted swiftly, our entire trainload of people might have been drowned by the flood."

"Switch to today; it’s the same. Blowing up the Farakka Dam may affect your homes and fields, but it’s about saving the lives of nearly fifty million people in five county towns downstream. I know you might say that the downstream towns are unrelated to you and there’s no need to pay the price for strangers."

"But as the saying goes, ’In the beginning, no one cared about this disaster. It was just a brush fire, a drought, the extinction of a species, the disappearance of a city until it was connected to everyone.’ If one day, you become the downstream towns, would you expect the upstream residents to help you?"

Perhaps it was Gu Ji’s calm and sincere attitude that touched the soft spots in the villagers’ hearts.

Gradually, many people’s expressions became less angry than before, and some elderly ones with relaxed their grip on the sticks.

Fatima, Swaraj, and the others looked on with amazement.

Although Gu Ji had served in the army, he was still a civil servant. Yet, in facing such a tense standoff, with villagers attacking, not only was he not flustered, but he was able to calmly craft such a persuasive speech. His composure was frightening, unlike anything a 27 or 28-year-old young man should be capable of.

In reality.