TMC approaches EC over Sandeshkhali 'sting operation' video

The TMC got a complaint lodged with the EC on Thursday against the BJP's Suvendu Adhikari and others, claiming that a leader of the saffron party has "confessed" on camera that the rape accusations in the Sandeshkhali incident were concocted, and urged the poll panel to issue directions to police to initiate criminal proceedings against the leaders concerned. Trinamool Congress's (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose submitted a letter to the Election Commission (EC) on Thursday. In the letter, the Mamata Banerjee-led party has accused Adhikari and other BJP leaders of committing "serious fraud upon the society by engaging in a deep-rooted conspiracy to orchestrate false rape complaints against Mr Sheikh Shahjahan, Mr Shibu Hazra and Mr Uttam Sardar".

The complaint is based on a purported video in which a man claiming to be Gangadhar Kayal -- the BJP's mandal president in Sandeshkhali -- is heard saying Adhikari, the leader of opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, was "behind the whole conspiracy".

In the "sting operation" video shot by a news platform and shared by the TMC on X, Kayal is heard saying sexual harassment complaints were filed at the behest of Adhikari.


West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar alleged that the "sting operation" was "fake" and suspected that it was made using artificial intelligence (AI).

The TMC shared the YouTube link of the video on the microblogging platform and said Kayal has openly admitted to manipulating the women of Sandeshkhali into filing false rape complaints under the instructions of Adhikari and other Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders.

"Such actions suggest a calculated effort by BJP leaders to undermine the reputation of the AITC and potentially manipulate their way to power in West Bengal through illicit means, thereby disregarding the principles of level-playing field," the ruling party in the state said.

"These actions are not only morally reprehensible but also constitute serious criminal offences, including conspiracy, fraud and defamation. The BJP members involved must be held accountable for their actions and appropriate legal action must be taken against them," it added.

The TMC urged the poll panel to issue "immediate directions" to the respective inspectors in-charge of the competent police stations to initiate criminal proceedings against the leaders of the saffron party, including Adhikari, and order detention and interrogation of all the individuals seen or implicated in the video.

They also urged the EC to issue directions restraining the BJP and its leaders from speaking on the Sandeshkhali incident, stating that evidence suggests that they were spreading orchestrated and unverified allegations against the TMC and its leaders.

Sandeshkhali, a village in North 24 Parganas district, hit the headlines recently when a group of women protested against local TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his associates and accused them of sexually assaulting them and land grab. Sheikh and a few others were arrested subsequently.