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In a blistering attack on the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla on Saturday claimed a fresh rape incident in Malda district amid the row over the alleged horrific incidents in Sandeshkhali.
"Be it Sandeshkhali or Malda, no woman safe in Bengal. In another case of brutal rape and murder, a class ninth student, a Tribal, was found lifeless with face smashed, in a brick kiln in Bhabuk village of Old Malda Assembly," Poonawalla claimed in a post on X. He further claimed instances of similar incidents in the districts while alleging that the 'rapists are being protected'. "This is not the first such case in Malda. Recently a half-naked body of a 25-year-old was found after rape & murder," the BJP leader mentioned in the post. "Many such instances taking place in Bengal but Shahjahan and rapists are being protected and patronised & those who speak up against it are arrested! This is TALIBANI MANSIKTA AND CULTURE (TMC)," the post added. Meanwhile, a TMC delegation arrived in Sandeshkhali to meet the locals here. Speaking to ANI, TMC leader and West Bengal minister Sujit Bose said, "We have come here to take stock of the situation. Some work is ongoing in connection with an incident of arson. We are here to oversee it and will brief you more after the visit." CPI(M) leader Minakshi Mukherjee, too, visited the victims at Sandeskhali in North 24 Parganas earlier in the day. However, she later alleged to have been stopped by the police from proceeding elsewhere in the district where, too, complaints similar to Sandeshkhali have surfaced. Sandeshkhali has been on the boil for a few days as a section of women are seeking justice against alleged atrocities committed by TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his aides. A large number of women in Sandeshkhali had accused Trinamool Congress strongman Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters of "land-grab and sexually assaulting" them under coercion. Shahjahan continues to evade arrest, with both state police and central agencies unable to trace him. Following the incident, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) team visited Sandeshkhali to ascertain facts through a "spot- inquiry" into the incidents of violence in the North 24 Parganas islands and meet the victims. The Commission has observed that the recent incidents in Sandeshkhali, as have been reported in various print and electronic media, indicate a prima facie violation of human rights, shocking the conscience. Also, the NHRC issued a notice to the DGP directing him to submit a report within two weeks in a case where a journalist of a news channel was detained by police in Sandeshkhali. The Commission also asked its DIG (investigation) to find out the facts by telephone and submit his findings to the Commission within a week. (ANI)
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