Kolkata:

In a blow to the West Bengal government, the Calcutta High Court on Friday ordered the release of a woman BJP leader from Sandeshkhali, Mampi Das who was arrested after a sting operation video went viral in which a BJP leader stated that the women’s protest was plotted and orchestrated by the BJP and Das played a key role in it.

While raising questions on the justification for the arrest, the single-judge Bench of Justice Jay Sengupta also questioned who was behind the police action.

Justice Sengupta ordered that Das be released on a personal bond and put a stay on Section 195A (punishment for threatening to give false evidence) of the Indian Penal Code imposed on her.

The next hearing on the matter will be on June 19.

He also observed how Ms Das was arrested. Stating that there were clear directions of the Supreme Court on the use of Section 195A, a non-bailable offence, he observed that if not the Calcutta High Court, the state government and police should at least go by the directions of the Supreme Court.

He also questioned the order of the Judicial Magistrate who ordered the arrest of Das in the matter. “Who is the Investigating Officer in this case and who is the mastermind?” he questioned.

He also questioned how the lower court ordered police custody for Das without examining the Case Diary.

The BJP’s state spokesman Samik Bhattacharya said, “Since the beginning, we had been saying that Mampi’s arrest was a part of a bigger conspiracy.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Kolkata:

In another twist to the Sandeskhali row, a woman has alleged that people linked with the BJP made her sign a blank paper and then wrote a false rape complaint in her name. The development has intensified the political blame game between the ruling Trinamool and the BJP, which has been playing up the Sandeshkhali issue in the election season.

Speaking to the media, a Sandeshkhali resident said that the day a team of the National Commission for Women visited the island, a woman named Piyali called them to share their complaints. “I told them that we had not received money as part of the 100 days’ job scheme. I only wanted that money and had no other complaint. No rape happened. She (Piyali) made us sign on a blank sheet,” the woman said, adding that she later came to know that she is on the list of women who alleged rape by local Trinamool leaders.

The woman’s daughters-in-law accused Piyali of defaming Sandeshkhali. “She is an outsider, she has come from somewhere else and talks big. We don’t know how she has information about everyone here. Initially, she would just take part in the protests here. We later came to know she is with the BJP. She should be punished for lying to us and trapping us. I’m sure more people were deceived like this,” they said. The woman and her family said they are now receiving threats for coming out against Piyali.

The Trinamool Congress, which was on the backfoot after local party leaders were accused of rape, land grab and extortion, has latched on to the woman’s allegations and accused the BJP of cooking up stories to malign the ruling party for political gains.

Trinamool MP Sushmita Dev alleged that the BJP is threatening the “courageous women of Sandeshkhali for daring to speak out against them”. “How much longer will this party persist in spinning webs of deceit, shamelessly trampling on the dignity of our mothers and sisters for their own political greed?” she asked.

The BJP hit back, describing Trinamool’s allegations as a damage control exercise that has come too late. Party spokesperson Priyanka Tibrewal said the Trinamool must understand that there is no use crying over spilt milk. “Why is Trinamool responding now? Why were they quiet for two-three months. They earlier said the women (of Sandeshkhali) were lying, now they are saying they were made to lie. Whatever damage had to happen has happened. There is no smoke without fire,” she told NDTV.

The Trinamool Congress has now registered a complaint with the Election Commission against several BJP leaders, including Suvendu Adhikari, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, accusing them of levelling fabricated allegations in the Sandeshkhali matter.

The nondescript island in North 24 Parganas made headlines in February when local residents accused strongman Sheikh Shahjahan and his aides of harassing them. Shahjahan, now expelled by the Trinamool Congress, was arrested after he was on the run for over a month in a case relating to a mob attack on Enforcement Directorate officials probing him. He is now in the CBI’s custody.

In a shocking twist in the Sandeskhali row last week, a video of a local BJP leader started doing the rounds. The video showed Gangadhar Koyal purportedly admitting that no rapes or sexual harassment took place in Sandeshkhali and that women were convinced to file such complaints at the directions of Mr Adhikari.

The BJP and the leader in the video have claimed that the clip was doctored and his voice edited. A police complaint has also been filed.

Kolkata:

The Congress and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee do not have the guts to touch the Citizenship Amendment Act, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said today, assuring that all Hindu refugees will get citizenship under the new law.

Mr Shah was addressing a rally at Karandighi in Bengal’s Uttar Dinajpur district to bolster support for BJP candidate from Raiganj Kartik Paul. The Raiganj seat was won by the BJP in 2019. Trinamool has fielded Krishna Kalyani, an MLA, from the north Bengal seat. Raiganj votes in the second phase on Friday.

Mr Shah said the Bengal Chief Minister cannot stop infiltration into the border state. “Can Mamata Banerjee stop infiltration? She cannot. Only (Prime Minister Narendra) Modiji can stop infiltration.”

“You gave us 18 seats last time. Modiji gave Ram Mandir. Give us 35 seats this time, we will stop infiltration,” he said.

The Home Minister also referred to the Sandeshkhali row, which has emerged as a big talking point in Bengal this election season. “In Sandeshkhali, Mamata Banerjee allowed women to be tortured so that her votebank is not affected. The High Court intervened and today the accused are in jail,” Mr Shah said. The island in Bengal’s North 24 Parganas had made national headlines after local Trinamool leaders were accused of land grab, extortion and sexual harassment.

Mr Shah also brought up the Calcutta High Court’s order scrapping about 25,000 appointments of government school staff over alleged irregularities. “Rs 10 lakh to 15 lakh were paid for each job. 51 crore rupees were recovered from (former Bengal minister) Partha Chatterjee’s home.”

“Mamata Banerjee came to power on the slogan of Maa, Maati, Manush. In Sandeshkhali, Maa was tortured, Maati was given to Bangladeshi infiltrators and Manush have been suffering due to corruption,” Mr Shah said. “Vote for BJP and Mamata Banerjee’s goondas will be hung upside down and straightened,” he said.

Accusing the ruling Trinamool of corruption, Mr Shah said, “Look at TMC leaders’ houses. Those who stayed in thatched roof houses today own four-storeyed houses, roam around in cars. This is your money.”

He also promised that the Centre will set up an AIIMS in north Bengal if the Narendra Modi-led BJP returns to power. “We had planned an AIIMS in Raiganj. Mamata didi blocked it. This is Modiji’s guarantee. Give us 30 seats, we will start work on north Bengal’s first AIIMS.”

In back-to-back rallies in Raiganj and Kumarganj yesterday, Ms Banerjee had claimed that the BJP is in panic mode after sensing defeat in the first phase of polling.

“Fear and panic have gripped the BJP. After the first phase of polling in nearly 100 seats across the country, they have sensed defeat. That is why they are making baseless statements. The rout of the saffron camp is only a matter of time,” she said. On Sandeshkhali, she said, “It is a ploy to malign us ahead of the elections.”

She also said she will not allow the citizenship law to be implemented. “The CAA is a trap to turn legal citizens into foreigners. Once you implement CAA, NRC will follow. We will allow neither CAA nor NRC in West Bengal. If you apply, you will be designated as a foreigner,” she said.

Kolkata:

Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “double standards”, the Trinamool today said he has no right to lecture on women’s security as BJP leaders were charged with sexually harassing female wrestlers.

Senior TMC leader and party’s Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien also claimed that 51 cases of crimes are being registered against women in the country every hour and asked the Prime Minister what he has done to improve the situation.

While addressing a rally at Barasat today, PM Modi on Wednesday said the “storm of Sandeshkhali” will reach every part of West Bengal, asserting that ‘Nari Shakti’ (woman power) will play a pivotal role in decimating the ruling TMC in the state.

The riverine island of Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district has been on the boil over allegations of sexual atrocities on women and land grabbing by suspended TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his cohorts.

“Today, PM Narendra Modi lectured on Nari Shakti. Three questions to you, Sir – Why are there 51 cases of crimes against women every hour? Why does BJP have 13 per cent women in Lok Sabha, why only 14 per cent women in 195 candidate list?” Mr O’Brien said in a post on his X handle.

Mr O’Brien’s third question was: “Why no action against BJP MP charged with sexually harassing wrestlers?” The question alluded to BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a BJP MP and former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief, who is accused of sexually harassing women wrestlers. Singh, however, rejected the accusations.

Wondering if PM Modi has the moral right to speak on the steps taken by his government against rapists, TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev said, “BJP leaders and workers had felicitated rapists of Bilkis Bano.”

The 11 convicts in the 2002 Bilkis Bano case of Gujarat were released following a Supreme Court order, and they were welcomed by BJP leaders with garlands following their release from jail in 2023. The top court on January 8 this year, however, quashed the Gujarat government’s decision to grant remission to those convicts.

Ms Dev said, “You (PM Modi) are talking about women’s safety when female wrestlers of Haryana had been beaten black and blue by Delhi Police for protesting outside Jantar Mantar in Delhi. Where was your helpline for women then?”

Accusing PM Modi of “double standards”, she claimed, “Your rhetorical speeches are nothing but a joke. Your real face is anti-woman and whole India knows that.”

West Bengal minister and senior TMC leader Shashi Panja said, “PM Modi has no right to invoke the name of Maa Sarada and Nari Shakti in his speech, going by the track record of his party leaders who had ridiculed a revered personality like Maa Sarada in a meme.” He should hold the mirror to himself first, she added.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today registered a case against Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan, the central figure in the Sandeshkhali row in West Bengal, on money laundering charges. 

Raids are underway at Sheikh Shahjahan’s house and six other locations. 

The women in Sandeshkhali have accused Sheikh Shahjahan of involvement in land-grabbing activities and perpetrating sexual assault, allegedly through coercive means.

Shahjahan has been evading law enforcement since a mob, allegedly linked to him, attacked ED officials during a search operation related to a ration scam on January 5. The incident not only heightened tensions but also raised concerns about the influence and power wielded by Shahjahan and his supporters in the region.

The situation has led to a crackdown by the state police, resulting in the arrest of Shahjahan’s aides, Shibu Hazra and Uttam Sardar. However, Shahjahan remains missing. With 17 arrests made so far, the police are urging villagers to come forward with their complaints, organising camps in the area to address concerns related to land grab and extortion.

The BJP has accused the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress of shielding its strongman.