TMC – BJP Row over Sandeshkhali Escalates, Mamata Banerjee Accuses BJP of Instigating Riots

Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, Feb 15: The Trinamool Congress – BJP row over alleged sexual assault on women in Sandeshkhali village close to Bangladesh border escalated further with the BJP targeting the TMC MP for “misplaced priorities” and the TMC Chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee accusing the BJP of causing RSS-instigated riots in the island.

Amid a political storm over BJP’s sexual harassment allegations, Ms Banerjee told the state Assembly on Thursday that she had “never allowed injustice” and accused the BJP of inciting trouble on the island in North 24 Parganas district.

Ms Banerjee’s response came soon after the BJP launched a scathing attack on TMC MP Nusrat Jahan, accusing her of neglecting the serious issues faced by women in Sandeshkhali. The area has recently witnessed clashes between the police and BJP workers protesting against alleged sexual harassment of women by TMC leaders.

As BJP workers led by state party president Sukanta Majumder protested against the purported sexual exploitation in Sandeshkhali, Nusrat Jahan shared photos of her celebrating Valentine’s Day with her husband, actor Yash Dasgupta. Wearing an elegant crimson dress, she was seen in a Valentine’s Day-themed photoshoot, which she shared on her official Instagram account. The BJP seized the opportunity to criticize the actor-turned-politician, highlighting what they see as a stark contrast in priorities.

“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, shortly after main Opposition BJP staged a walkout over the raging issue.

Blaming the BJP for the unrest on the island, the TMC chief said the Centre had targeted local Trinamool leader Sheikh Shahjahan through the Enforcement Directorate. “First, they entered the area and targeted Sheikh Shahjahan though ED 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.

Shahjahan, a local strongman, has been on the run for a month now after ED officials who visited the island to raid his home came under a mob attack. Ms Banerjee said a police team is meeting women in Sandeshkhali. A police team of women are going door to door to see if there are any complaints. If they file a report, we will look into it,” she said.

Sandeshkhali has hit headlines after the BJP accused Sheikh Shahjahan’s aides of sexual harassment. The BJP has targeted the Trinamool Congress government in the state over the allegations. The ruling party has trashed the charges and said the BJP was trying to create unrest in the area. The island, meanwhile, has an uneasy calm.

The West Bengal Police have said a section of media was spreading “wilful misinformation” to mislead people about the events in Sandeshkhali.” “It is reiterated that no allegations of sexual torture of women have so far been received during the enquiries since conducted by the State Women’s Commission, an all-women 10-member fact-finding team led by DIG CID, and also the district police,” police have said.

“Priorities matter: In Sandeshkhali, women are protesting for their respect. Meanwhile, the TMC MP of Basirhat is celebrating Valentine’s Day,” the Bengal BJP said in a post on X attacking Nusrat Jahan. Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, condemned the treatment of Sukanta Majumdar by the state police, stating that the BJP would protest against it.

Responding to the accusations, the Trinamool Congress accused the BJP of attempting to disrupt peace in the area. West Bengal Minister Shashi Panja emphasized that the situation was returning to normalcy, with the National Women’s Commission finding no evidence of sexual harassment during their visit.

Meanwhile, another actor-politician colleague of Nusrat Jahan, the TMC MP from Jadavpur Mimi Chakraborty on Thursday submitted her resignation to the party chief Ms Banerjee saying that she had some differences with the local leaders of the party.  Her resignation had no yet been accepted but Ms Chakraborty said once Ms Banerjee accepted her resignation, she would submit her resignation to the Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla.

“I had a dream for Jadavpur, but I faced a lot of hurdles. It is very easy to malign a person when he or she comes from a film background, saying that he or she does not work,” she said. “I don’t understand the nitty-gritty of politics. When I reached out to people, I think it might not have gone down well with a lot of people or may be some of them,” the popular Bengali film star MP added. She said she had started feeling that politics was not her field.