Sandeshkhali case: How cops arrested TMC’s Sheikh Shahjahan after 55 days

The manhunt for absconding Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan, the strongman in Sandeshkhali who has been accused of sexual atrocities and land grab, has finally come to an end. The Bengal Police nabbed him early this morning and he will now be taken to Basirhat court.

Notably, the arrest comes three days after the Calcutta High Court criticised the state police for their inaction against the Trinamool leader and said that he “should be arrested”.

We take a closer look at how finally after a 55-day hunt, the TMC strongman was finally nabbed.

An arrest, at last

After 55 whole long days, the Bengal Police found and arrested Sheikh Shahjahan, who was in hiding, from a house in Minakhah in North 24 Parganas district. He has been on the run since 5 January when a team of Enforcement Directorate officials had arrived at his residence in the state’s Sandeshkhali area.

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The team had been monitoring the leader’s activities for several days leading up to the arrest, officials said.

#WATCH | Sandeshkhali violence | TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan arrested by West Bengal Police. He will be presented before Basirhat Court today.

Visuals from the Court premises. #WestBengal pic.twitter.com/ZYoXYeMMH6

— ANI (@ANI) February 29, 2024

While some reports say that he was arrested around midnight, some others say that the TMC leader was nabbed at 3 am. As per Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) of Minakhah, Aminul Islam Khan, Shahjahan has been arrested and is presently in the court’s lock-up. “The TMC leader, who has been taken to Basirhat, will be produced before the court at 2 pm today,” said the SDPO.

The arrest comes after the Calcutta High Court, on Monday, reprimanded the state police for their alleged inaction regarding the allegations, noting that the incidents were reported four years ago.

On 26 February, the Calcutta High Court Justice said, “There is no reason to not arrest him.”

The court also asked officials to issue public notice in newspapers informing that legal actions has been initiated against Sheikh Shahjahan.

TMC-BJP trade charges over arrest

Shortly after Shahjahan was arrested, the Trinamool Congress hailed the state police’s action. TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh told news agency PTI, “Due to a legal tangle, he couldn’t be arrested initially. However, after the court clarified that there was no stay on his arrest, the West Bengal Police did its job. The Opposition had earlier exploited the embargo on his arrest.

Voicing similar sentiments, TMC’s Santanu Sen said that Shahjahan’s arrest proves that the Mamata Banerjee-led government follows ‘rajdharma’ in an administrative manner. “We had taken action against Partha Chatterjee and Jyotipriya Mallick, and similarly, we have taken action against Shibu Hazra and Uttam Sardar and now Sheikh Shahjahan has been arrested. On one side, accused leaders openly move in BJP-ruled states and on the other side our administration doesn’t spare accused TMC leaders if there is evidence against them. BJP should learn ‘rajdharma’ from the TMC.”

However, the BJP dubbed the arrest as scripted and claimed he was in the safe custody of West Bengal Police. West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar told news agency ANI, “Due to the continuous agitation by the BJP, this government was compelled to arrest Sheikh Shahjahan.”

#WATCH | Sandeshkhali incident | On the arrest of TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan, West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar says, "Due to the continuous agitation by the BJP, this government was compelled to arrest Sheikh Shahjahan. The government was in denial mode. They were not… pic.twitter.com/UuQ2IGA0Dj

— ANI (@ANI) February 29, 2024

BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya added, “It was TMC and the state police which were shielding the culprits. He has been arrested now as a part of a well-scripted story.”

Earlier on Wednesday, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari claimed that Shahjahan Sheikh was in ‘safe custody’ of the state police since Tuesday. Adhikari also alleged that the TMC strongman had struck a deal with West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and was getting five-star treatment in police custody.

Shahjahan’s ‘reign of terror’ in Sandeshkhali

The area of Sandeshkhali, situated 100 kilometres away from Kolkata on the borders of the Sundarbans, has been on the edge with protests from the locals, alleging that TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan has been indulging in land grabbing as well as sexual abuse .

A local TMC leader, Shahjahan wields great power and influence in Sandeshkhali, earning him the nickname ‘Betaj Badshah’. He has also been previously embroiled in several criminal cases, including the murder of three BJP workers in 2019.

Women in the Sandeshkhali area had earlier alleged that the TMC men called them to resorts, party offices or school buildings under the garb of late-night meetings. One of the women told Indian Express about her trauma, saying, “What do you call summoning us at 10 pm under the pretext of a meeting? Touching us whenever they like and wherever they like, pulling our saree? I went through that so many times and I am not alone.”

Following the allegations, Governor C V Ananda Bose visited Sandeshkhali on 12 February and described the situation as “ghastly, shocking, and shattering”. He announced that the “doors of Raj Bhavan are open for victimised women who can come and stay here”. Furthermore, he submitted a report to the Union Home Ministry and called for a judicial inquiry.

Others also visited the area, and alleged that there was no law and order there. However, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rejected these claims and said that the BJP had “brought in” people to “instigate” violence in Sandeshkhali, and had “fabricated an adivasi (ST) versus minorities (Muslim) fight”.

With inputs from agencies