Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC were imposed and internet services suspended in Sandeshkhali, where local women held protests demanding the arrest of absconding Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Shajahan Sheikh and his aides.
Bose was not in Raj Bhavan when the BJP leaders visited his official residence. He is now in Kerala, officials said.
Adhikari and the BJP MLAs submitted the memorandum to the Raj Bhavan officials. The BJP members raised slogans in the Raj Bhavan like “Sandeshkhali is burning”, “Mamata is laughing”.
Speaking to reporters, the Nandigram MLA said, “I conveyed my demands to his secretary. They behaved well with us. If peace is not restored within 24 hours, we will sit on dharna in front of Raj Bhavan where the nephew of the Chief Minister sat on dharna a few days before.”
In December, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee had sat on a dharna outside the Raj Bhavan to demand pending funds for the state which his party alleged were blocked by the Centre. Adhikari alleged that human rights have been violated in Sandeshkhali. “Sandeshkhali is a place where the ‘rule of law’ is nonexistent, rather the ‘law of rulers’ namely Sheikh Shajahan and his aides was established,” he wrote on X.
The BJP leader also alleged that even though prohibitory orders were clamped in Sandeshkhali, TMC workers have been torturing local residents, who had protested against Sheikh and his two aides.
Reacting to the allegations, the ruling TMC said Sandeshkhali was a Communist Party of India (Marxist) bastion and the latter along with the BJP was trying to “create chaos and engage in violent activities” in the area. The CPI(M) has denied the charge.
West Bengal minister and TMC leader Partha Bhowmick said, “Sandeshkhali is CPI(M)’s bastion. We have never won in this area. Hence, it is evident that it is the collective effort of both the Left and the CPI(M) to destroy law and order in Sandeshkhali. There is a vast difference between a mass protest and outrage in small pockets. If we are so strong in the area, why did we lose in 2016? It is an anti-Trinamool and CPI(M) dominated area. If there’s any issue in Kanthi, will we say that it is the issue of the whole of Bengal or that particular area?”
Hitting out at the BJP, TMC MP Kakali Ghosh Dastidar said, “We have complete faith in the police. Meanwhile, multiple arrests have been made. We condemn the ongoing violence. However, we came to know that this area is dominated by the CPI(M). They, along with the BJP, are trying to create mayhem in the area. As you all know, we had an exceptional state Budget. In order to divert attention from the good work we are doing, they are creating chaos and engaging in violent activities.”
CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty denied the TMC’s allegations and said locals in Sandeshkhali, irrespective of party affiliation, had “awakened against the misdeeds of TMC leaders”. “They are facing the wrath of the people whom they had mistreated for so many years. They are now running away from their houses to save their face. But they can’t run forever and will have to face justice,” said Chakraborty.
— With pti inputs