“I told you that there will be light at the end of the tunnel. That is democracy. We waited, but it has been done. This is a lesson for everyone. Now, let’s hope a new dawn of lawfulness will come back to Bengal,” Bose said.

On Monday, the Governor had given a 72-hour “deadline” to the state government to arrest the TMC leader. On Thursday morning, the West Bengal Police arrested him in Minakhan, around 30 km away from the island of Sandeshkhali. He was taken to Basirhat court which remanded him in police custody for 10 days.

Sheikh and his aides are among the key accused in cases of land grab and sexual harassment that surfaced following violent protests in Sandeshkhali island of North 24 Parganas district. He had been absconding since January 5 after a team of ED officials was attacked by a mob of his supporters near his residence in Sandeshkhali.

Sandeshkhali has been witnessing widespread protests against local strongman Sheikh from the beginning of February, with women accusing his close aides Uttam Sardar and Shivprasad Hazra of sexual harassment. The protests have led to the TMC and the BJP taking potshots at each other even as the police are trying to restore peace in the area.