The Basirhat Sub-Divisional Court in West Bengal has sent suspended Trinamool Congress (TMC) strongman and Sandeshkhali-accused Shahjahan Sheikh to four-day CBI custody in connection with the January 5 attack on the Enforcement Directorate team in Sandeshkhali.
Shahjahan, having completed his 10-day police custody on Sunday, was produced before the court again.
Following the directive of the Calcutta High Court, the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Kolkata Police handed over custody of Sheikh Shahjahan to the CBI.
The high court, issuing a contempt notice to the CID, ruled on Wednesday that the case concerning the attack on ED officials should be transferred to the CBI along with the custody of the main accused, Shahjahan.
The court observed that the state police had engaged in ‘hide and seek’ in the matter.
“The accused holds political influence. The investigation should be transferred to the CBI and custody of the accused by 4:15 pm today,” remarked the high court.
After reportedly being on the run for nearly two months, the now-suspended TMC strongman was apprehended by West Bengal Police on February 29, 2024.
He was presented before the Basirhat court, which granted him police custody for 10 days.
Besides the assault on an ED team, which was conducting a raid at his Sandeshkhali residence regarding an alleged ration scam, Shahjahan faces accusations of land grabbing, extortion, and committing atrocities on women alongside his associates.
The women of Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district erupted in violent protests, alleging severe excesses and abuses by Shahjahan and his cohorts.
Several women on the island accused Shahjahan and his associates of “land-grab and sexual assault” under duress.
