‘Cops could’ve nabbed Shajahan had court not tied their hands’

At a time when the locals along with the Opposition parties in the state are demanding the arrest of Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Sheikh Shajahan, the party’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee has said action could have been taken against the person long back had the court of law not stayed the FIR lodged against him by the state police.

Speaking to a vernacular news portal, Banerjee is learnt to have said that the state police could have arrested Shajahan long back had matters been left to them. He has clarified that it was state police which had lodged an FIR against him at a time when the Enforcement Directorate (ED) failed to apprehend him. The ED was attacked in January when they had gone to raid Shajahan’s residence in Sandeshkhali in connection with the alleged ration distribution scam.

Without mincing words, Banerjee claimed that the ED, however, moved the court and obtained a stay order against the FIR lodged by the West Bengal Police.

Hence, it is now the court which has kept the hands of the state administration tied with its order.

Abhishek also recalled to the media that one cannot forget that it is the same West Bengal Police that had arrested the Sarada scam kingpin Sudipta Sen from Kashmir. Recently, just before the state police arrested another TMC leader Shibu Hazra on February 17 in relation to the Sandeshkhali issue, the DGP of West Bengal Police, Rajeev Kumar spoke on similar lines while addressing a press conference. When asked about TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan, he told the media: “There is a case by ED. Have they arrested him? The case which was registered by us, has been stopped by the ED.”

Reacting to the allegations that the TMC is protecting Shajahan, Abhishek Banerjee chose to remind that the party took action against its former Cabinet ministers Partha Chatterjee, and recently Jyotipriyo Mallick, so there is no reason why the party cannot take action against Sheikh Shajahan.

Meanwhile, the ED, on Friday, filed a fresh case against Shajahan relating to an old case concerning land encroachment and conducted searches across West Bengal in various locations linked to his associates.

Several Sandeshkhali villagers have accused Shajahan and his associates such as Shibu Hazra and Uttam Sardar of land grabbing and sexually harassing women.