Violent protest in Sandeshkhali demanding arrest of absconding TMC leader

  With sticks and brooms in their hands, local women took out processions in different areas of Sandeshkhali as the protest intensified on the second day.

PTI, Barasat (WB), Feb 9, 2024 : Protests led by local women, demanding the arrest of absconding TMC leader Sheikh Shajahan and his aides, rocked Sandeshkhali in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on Friday.

With sticks and brooms in their hands, local women took out processions in different areas of Sandeshkhali as the protest intensified on the second day.

In the afternoon, Shajahan's aide Shiboprasad Hazra's house was vandalised and some furniture was torched, police said.

A poultry farm in Zeliakhali belonging to Hazra was also set ablaze, they said.

Eight people were detained in connection with the vandalism, DIG (Barasat range) Sumit Kumar said.

Addressing a press conference, Additional Director-General (Law and Order) Manoj Verma urged people not to take the law into their own hands.

"Investigation is underway into all complaints that have been lodged and action will be taken. At the same time, if someone takes up the law into their hands, the law will take its own course. The situation is at present under control," he said.

The protesting women also staged a sit-in outside the Sandeshkhali police station for a few hours. They withdrew the demonstration around 7 pm, stating that it would resume on Saturday.

Shajahan went missing last month after a team of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that went to raid his house in the alleged ration scam was attacked by a mob.

The protesting women alleged that Shajahan and his "gang" captured swathes of land by force, besides sexually harassing them.

Meanwhile, Shajahan's supporters also took to the streets, further adding to the tension.

The TMC claimed that the BJP and CPI (M) were inciting the people to foment unrest in the area.

"There could have been discontentment against one or two TMC leaders in the area. The conspirators took advantage of that to foment trouble. It is an isolated incident, and people's grievances will be addressed," TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said.

BJP said the incident was an outcome of pent-up rage among the people.

"The incident in Sandeshkhali is a trailer of things to come. The TMC regime will not last for many days," BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya claimed.

CPI(M) leader Tanmoy Bhattacharya said the "illegal occupation" of hundreds of acres of land and police inaction led to the public outburst.

"This was not political, it was a spontaneous mob fury," he claimed.