on 7 march 1927, bengali hindus were going towards the ponabalia shiva temple in a procession on the occasion of shivaratri in ponabalia, nalchity, jhalokati district, barisal division, east bengal, british india. the procession was singing sankirtan and beating drums. the processions was passing by a mosque where muslims were praying. the muslims asked to the hindus to observe silence, which they refused. the muslims tried to stop the procession by creating a human barricade. satindranath sen, an satyagraha activist, asked the hindus to perform sankirtan louder. the e district magistrate, e. n. blandy, and superintendent of police, taylor rushed to the scene along with a police force.