On Thursday (15th February), Supreme Court lawyer Alakh Alok Shrivastava filed a PIL in the Supreme Court seeking an investigation into the cases of violence in Sandeshkhali, either by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Advocate Shrivastava also demanded the transfer of investigation and subsequent trial of the case outside of the state.
The agitation in West Bengal’s Sandeshkhali district continues, with protesters, including many women, demanding the arrest of Trinamool leader Shajahan Sheikh and his associates. Sheikh and his cohorts are accused of land grabbing and sexual harassment.
#BREAKING | Lawyer files PIL in Supreme Court seeking CBI probe in Sandeshkhali violence case
— Republic (@republic) February 16, 2024
Tune in here for all the latest updates – https://t.co/JU7FOwLVG8#Sandeshkhali #CBI #TMC #BJP #SupremeCourt pic.twitter.com/LW69qjOLZh
Advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava described the incident as highly unsettling and expressed a realistic concern that a free and fair investigation and trial of the instant case could not be conducted in West Bengal, and so the case should be transferred outside the state of West Bengal in the interests of justice.
“The inaction of the local police authorities is evident from the fact that the said main accused Sheikh Shahjahan is absconding and has not been arrested till now. Furthermore, there are serious allegations of the local police authorities acting hand in glove with the said main accused Sheikh Shahjahan at the behest of the ruling dispensation and thus, it is further in the interest of justice to transfer the investigation of this case to Central Bureau of Investigation (“CBI”) or a Special Investigation Team (“SIT”) under the monitoring of this (Supreme Court) court,” the plea stated.
Advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava’s PIL also sought to constitute a committee of three retired High Court judges, similar to the committee formed in the Manipur tragedy case.
He urged the Supreme Court to give orders granting compensation to victims of sexual assault in Sandeshkhali under the relevant victim compensation scheme and deploying central paramilitary forces to protect the witnesses/victims involved.
He also sought direction to conduct the trial in the case upon completion of the probe, in a Fast-Track court in Delhi, in an expeditious and time-bound manner.
He further urged the apex court to issue directions to the West Bengal government to initiate stringent disciplinary action as well as penal action against the ‘erring policemen’.
Meanwhile, a fact-finding team led by BJP head JP Nadda is scheduled to visit the region today.
Former DGP and Rajya Sabha MP Brij Lal, who is a part of this team, condemned the violence in Sandeshkhali, alleging that it was carried out by Bangladeshi immigrants with the backing of the ruling party.
“BJP National President JP Nadda has formed a fact-finding team with 2 Union ministers and 4 MPs, including myself. There is absolute anarchy in West Bengal… All these incidents are being done solely by Bangladeshi immigrants who have been made to settle there by Mamata Banerjee as a vote bank. They have also been provided with ration cards and Aadhar cards. Sandeshkhali is a result of this… Rape and extortion are very common organised crimes of the TMC. The main accused, Shahjahan Sheikh is on the run and is being shielded by the TMC. Most of the crime in the state of West Bengal is being executed by Bangladeshi immigrants with the full support of the TMC…CAA-NRC should be immediately implemented in the state. It is difficult to do so, but the President’s rule needs to be imposed in West Bengal…” he said.
#WATCH | Lucknow, UP: On the Sandeshkhali violence, former DGP and Rajya Sabha MP Brij Lal says, "BJP National President JP Nadda has formed a fact-finding team with 2 Union ministers and 4 MPs, including myself. There is absolute anarchy in West Bengal… All these incidents are… pic.twitter.com/zWpTJWfsgR
— ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2024
According to the reports, the team arrived in Kolkata on Thursday (15th February) night. This comes after Nadda directed the team to visit the region, speak with women who have accused the Trinamool leader of sexual assault, and submit a report to him.
Violence in Sandeshkhali
Hundreds of women residents of Sandeshkhali took to the streets on Thursday (8th February) with brooms, sticks, and farming tools, and blocked the roads. They demanded the immediate arrest of TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his two aides Shiba Prasad Hazra and Uttam Sardar, whom they have accused of sexual assault and land grabbing.
The women had accused the trio of making their lives miserable for quite some time. The tension intensified on Friday (9th February) after angry villagers, led by women, in and around the Sandeshkhali area of North 24 Parganas, attacked the properties of Sheikh Shahjahan including a poultry farm owned by Shahjahan’s close confidant and Trinamool Congress leader Shibu Hazra.
The locals said that the poultry farm was set up on a plot of land that the Trinamool Congress leader had forcefully usurped. They also said that the poultry farm had developed into a centre for several illicit operations.
Locals also stated several other instances where Sheikh Shahjahan and his aides had forcefully grabbed lands from poor villagers. On Saturday (10th February), the local police imposed Section 144 in various areas in Sandeshkhali and also banned the use of the internet in 16 panchayats scattered over the two blocks of Sandeshkhali-I and Sandeshkhali-II.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Archana Majumdar has said that TMC members and the local police “jointly raided” the houses of protesting women and BJP workers. Majumdar said that the police even arrested and tortured them.
In a bid to pacify the angry villagers of Sandeshkhali, the TMC leadership suspended Uttam Sardar from the party for six years. The suspended TMC leader and Zilla Parishad member was subsequently arrested in the Sandeshkhali police station area. In the meantime, the Mamata Banerjee-led-TMC government arrested a former CPI(M) MLA named Nirpada Sardar in connection to the case on Sunday (11th February).
The Communist party leader was taken from his residence in Tollygunge to the Babsdroni police station. Thereafter, he was transferred to the Basirhat police station in North 24 Parganas district.
Nirpada Sarkar was arrested under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 120 B, 147, 148, 149, 379, 427,435, and 436. The family of the CPIM MLA, who won from the Sandeshkhali constituency in 2011, said that the arrest of Nirapada Sardar was made without any prior notice.
The West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, meanwhile, gave a clean chit to her aide Shahjahan Sheikh and his supporters whom the local women of Sandeshkhali have accused of land-grabbing and sexually assaulting them under coercion. Mamata added that there are no records of rape with the West Bengal police. She hinted that the women of Sandheskhali have not been wronged and that this is a conspiracy hatched by the BJP to target TMC’s leader Shahjahan Sheikh.
