BJP, Congress Delegations Stopped From Going to Bengal's Sandeshkhali

The political firestorm over the alleged harassment of villagers in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali by the aides of a Trinamool Congress strongman escalated on Friday with two delegations led by senior leaders of the BJP and the Congress being stopped from going to the island. 

Friday's six-member BJP delegation is being led by a Union minister and this is the third time a team from the party has been stopped from going to the village on a fact-finding mission. The BJP delegation also met West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose to apprise him of the situation.

The BJP has repeatedly claimed that women in the village have been raped and sexually harassed by the aides of Trinamool strongman Sheikh Shahjahan and the ruling party is not letting complaints be filed. The Trinamool has rubbished the allegations, accusing the BJP of trying to foment trouble, and the Bengal police has also said no complaints have been received.

The attempt by the Congress has implications for the INDIA alliance at a time when Trinamool Congress leader and Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has said her party will contest the Lok Sabha elections alone.

Led by Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the party delegation was stopped twice, once at Sarberia and then in Rampur in North 24 Parganas district. Rampur is close to the jetty from where ferries are available to go to the island of Sandeshkhali. 

When the police stopped them, citing prohibitory orders in the village, Mr Chowdhury said, "The chief minister is the Bengali queen of cruelty. The people of Bengal and all of India have seen you for who you are. From the panchayat to the state government to MPs, all are yours. Did you not know something of this kind was happening in Sandeshkhali? You have spoken out in favour of Shahjahan earlier."

Constituted by party President  JP Nadda, the BJP's delegation consists of six MPs, including two Union ministers, and is led by Union Minister Annapurna Devi. The BJP team was also stopped in Rampur and, after starting a sit-in protest, Annapurna Devi said, "If only the police had shown the same urgency in arresting Shahjahan as they have in stopping us... If the police had acted when the women in the village were being tortured by Shahjahan's goons and were crying out for justice, we wouldn't have had to see this day."

Shahjahan has been on the run since an Enforcement Directorate team was attacked by a mob during a raid on his house in connection with an alleged ration scam on January 5. Speaking to NDTV on Wednesday, some women named alleged two of Shahjahan's aides, Shibu Hazra and Uttam Sardar, have been harassing them. While Sardar has been arrested, the police are on the lookout for Hazra.

On Thursday, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee blamed the BJP for the situation and said there is an "RSS base" in Sandeshkhali. 

"I have never allowed injustice in my life. I sent (representatives of) the state women's commission (to Sandeshkhali) immediately and 17 people have been arrested," Ms Banerjee said in the Assembly.

"First, they (the BJP) entered the area and targeted Sheikh Shahjahan through the Enforcement Directorate and then they started the trouble there by getting people in. There is an RSS base in Sandeshkhali. There were riots earlier too," she said.