Suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan, accused in the Sandeshkhali case, was taken out of the CBI office at Nizam Palace in Kolkata on Sunday. He is scheduled to appear before the Basirhat court, which will decide on his custody.
Following the Calcutta High Court’s directive, the Kolkata Police’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) handed over Sheikh Shahjahan’s custody to the CBI. The high court, issuing a contempt notice to the CID, ruled on Wednesday that the case related to the attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials should be transferred to the CBI, along with the custody of the main accused, Shahjahan. The court criticized the state police’s conduct in the matter, stating that they played a game of ‘hide and seek.’
Describing the accused as a political influencer, the high court emphasized the need for CBI investigation and ordered the custody transfer by 4:15 pm on the same day.
Shahjahan, who had been reportedly evading arrest for nearly two months, was apprehended by the West Bengal Police on February 29. The Basirhat court remanded him in police custody for 10 days, following his arrest.
Apart from the attack on the ED team during a raid on his Sandeshkhali residence related to an alleged ration scam, Shahjahan faces accusations of land grab, extortion, and misconduct towards women, along with his associates. The women in Sandeshkhali staged protests, alleging grave excesses and atrocities by Shahjahan and his aides, including “land-grab and sexual assault” under coercion.
