TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan arrested in Sandeshkhali violence case
Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Sheikh Shahjahan, who faced accusations of sexual violence and land grabbing in Sandeshkhali village, was arrested in the early hours of Thursday. Sheikh was on the run for around 55 days and was found hiding in a Minkhan residence in North 24 Paraganas district, West Bengal, police said. The TMC's leader is now in Basirhat court lockup and will appear before the court later in the day.
Why does this story matter?
The riverine Sandeshkhali area has been on the boil since January. At the center of the unrest are Sheikh and his supporters, who have been accused of sexually assaulting women and grabbing land. Sheikh had been evading authorities since January 5, when a mob linked to him attacked Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials after they went to raid his place in an alleged ration scam.
TMC's response to the arrest
Reacting to the arrest, TMC leader Kunal Ghosh said, "Sheikh has been arrested. We welcome the steps of state (West Bengal) police." Ghosh also noted that TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee had mentioned that due to certain aspects of a Calcutta High Court order, state police were unable to take action. However, after Banerjee brought attention to the issue, the HC lifted the restrictions, allowing the police to move forward, he added.
TMC leader attacks BJP after Sheikh's arrest
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the TMC have been engaged in a political slugfest over Sheikh's delayed arrest for the last few weeks. After Sheikh's arrest, TMC leader Saket Gokhale hit out at the BJP in a post on X (formerly Twitter). "Despite multiple protests across the nation, the Modi Govt NEVER arrested Brij Bhushan Sharan... He even continues to be a Lok Sabha MP... Thats the difference between Mamata Banerjee & the criminal-protecting by Narendra Modi," he said.
Read Gokhale's statement here
Sheikh arrested because of BJP's continuous agitation: Majumdar
The BJP, meanwhile, linked the arrest to the party's continuous agitation over the matter. West Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar said, "Due to the continuous agitation by the BJP, this government was compelled to arrest Sheikh Shahjahan." "The government was in a mode of denial. They were not even accepting that anything has happened...Today, due to the agitation of the BJP and the women of Sandeshkhali, the government and Mamata were compelled to arrest him," he added.
Calcutta HC's order to CBI, ED
The arrest came a day after the Calcutta HC clarified that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the ED can arrest Sheikh. The court had made the clarification after the ED and CBI expressed reservations about the West Bengal Police probing the Sandeshkhali violence case. "The court has only stayed the constitution of a special investigation team. Therefore, it will be well open to the CBI or the ED to arrest the absconding accused," the bench said.
What the court said during Monday hearing
On Monday as well, the bench had clarified that there was no stay on the arrest of Sheikh. "We will clarify that there is no stay on arrest. A stay on investigation doesn't mean a stay on arrest. There is an FIR registered and he is branded as an accused," the court said. This followed TMC MP Banerjee's claim that the Bengal government cannot arrest Sheikh as the court "tied the hands of the police."
