Sandeshkhali women claim 'no rapes', accuse BJP of manipulation; TMC files complaint with EC

News from Sandeshkhali: The controversy that began with several women from Sunderban village in West Bengal leveling charges of land grabbing and sexual harassment against local Trinamool Congress (TMC) strongman Shahjahan Sheikh has taken a new turn after two women had withdrawn their complaint against the TMC leader.

Sandeshkhali Row: What we know so far

-Videos have allegedly emerged showing women claiming that the local BJP leader forced them to sign blank papers which were later filled with rape allegations against TMC leaders

– In one of the videos, a woman says: “We were tricked into signing on blank papers. We later discovered that rape reports had been filed in our name. This is a blatant lie.”

– A video surfaced on Saturday that sparked controversy in Sandeshkhali after it was aired by a local television channel. In the alleged footage, a person named Gangadhar Koyal, allegedly a BJP mandal president (booth), can be heard suggesting that women from Sandeshkhali, who have not experienced sexual assault, are referred to as “rape victims” on the instructions of the leader became the opposition.

-Allegations came from the TMC camp. TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghosh met the Election Commission of India and complained against the BJP.

– “We wrote a letter to the electoral commission. We told them that the Sandeshkhali incident was a conspiracy hatched by the BJP so that false rape statements were made. There was no rape in Sandeshkhali, it is all a lie,” Ghosh told reporters.

“The women now say they were given money and taught to say all this. False cases were registered. This is all a BJP conspiracy and has been perpetrated by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari…We want the Election Commission to intervene.” This and direct the police to take action against Suvendu Adhikari and the people – Gangadhar Koyal and Shanti Dolui – to arrest those who were seen in the video. We want Prime Minister Modi to apologize when he comes to West Bengal…,” Ghosh added.

– Another alleged resident of Sandeshkhali expressed similar views in a separate video, claiming that he was a victim of a plot orchestrated by BJP leader Piyali Das.

– A third woman also made the same accusation against BJP leader Piyali Das, saying she “has damaged our reputation and caused us immense suffering.”

-Sandeshkhali belongs to Basirhat constituency from where the BJP fielded Rekha Patra, a woman from Sandeshkhali who is also an alleged victim.

-The Sandeshkhali river area recently attracted a lot of attention when a group of women staged protests. They accused local TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his associates of sexual assault and land grabbing.

-Shahjahan, the central figure in the Sandeshkhali controversy, is currently imprisoned for his involvement in an incident in which a Directorate of Enforcement (ED) team was attacked during a raid on his residence. This raid was part of an investigation into suspected food fraud.

(Mint could not independently verify the videos)

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Published: May 09, 2024 6:44 PM IST