"Sheikh Shahjahan will be arrested very soon:" TMC leader Sagarika Ghose on Sandeshkhali

As Sandeshkhali remained tense, with delegations of political parties and members of civil society groups making a beeline to the strife-torn island in North 24 Parganas amid arrests and protests, Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP-elect Sagarika Ghose has claimed that the key accused, Sheikh Shahjahan, will be arrested very soon.

Sagarika Ghose, while speaking to ANI, said that the government is acting in this matter and will continue to do so.

"Key aides of Sheikh Shahjahan have been arrested. So, if the Government of Bengal wanted to shield Sheikh Shahjahan, would it arrest and put behind bars his own key aides? No one is being shielded; no one is being protected. No one will escape the law...The TMC and the Bengal Government are on the ground; they are working and there is every reason to believe that Sheikh Shahjahan will be arrested very soon," Ghose said on Tuesday.


She further claimed that complaints are being registered into the matter and land is being returned to all those who are aggrieved.

"The Government of Bengal is acting in Sandeshkhali. The CM has promised action; the government is acting and it will continue to act. So far, over 20 arrests have been made. There is a whole team in Sandeshkhali at the moment, camps have been set up, complaints are being registered and land is being returned to all those who are aggrieved. There is a police probe going on. Two senior female police officers are investigating..." Sagarika said.

Sandeshkhali in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district has been witnessing widespread protests against Trinamool Congress strongman Shahjahan Sheikh this month as a section of women are seeking justice against alleged atrocities committed by the TMC leader. Sheikh and his close aides have been accused of sexual harassment and land-grabbing.

A large number of women in Sandeshkhali had accused Trinamool Congress strongman Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters of "land-grab and sexual assault" under coercion. Shahjahan continues to evade arrest, with both state police and central agencies unable to trace him.