“I came here to talk to my officers. It’s our responsibility to see the well-being of the people. We will listen to the complaints of every individual. If there is any incident regarding land grabbing or anything else, we will take strict action against those found guilty. If people are found involved in torturing, we will take appropriate action against them,” Kumar told reporters after staying overnight in the violence-hit region.

Kumar held meetings with several top officials, including ADG South Bengal Supratim Sarkar, Basirhat Police District SP Hasan Mehedi Rehman and other police officers.

Sandeshkhali has been at the centre of a political firestorm ever since protests broke out in the area earlier this month, led by women who claim they were sexually harassed over the years by aides of Trinamool Congress (TMC) strongman Sheikh Shahjahan.

A team of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes arrived in Sandeshkhali on Thursday morning. “The Commission received a complaint from Sandeshkhali. We are going there in the same context. It is a rule of the Commission that we ask for a report from the DGP and the Chief Secretary. We have given them a three-day time. We are going to see the ground reality on the basis of the complaint. We are going to meet the complainant,” the Commission’s Vice Chairman Ananta Nayak told news agency ANI.

Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued notices to Bengal chief secretary BP Gopalika and DGP Kumar and sought reports. A special team of the commission constituted to investigate allegations of sexual violence and land grabbing will visit the area on Thursday.

(With PTI, ANI inputs)