Sandeshkhali Row: The central fact-finding committee will visit the trouble-ridden Sandeshkhali on Sunday.
New Delhi: In the strife-ridden region of Sandeshkhali, located in the North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, the quest for truth and justice for the women of Sandeshkhali is about to commence soon. On March 3, Justice L. Narsimha Reddy, the esteemed former Chief Justice of Patna High Court, will spearhead an investigation. This respected retired justice will passionately probe for any breach of human rights within this restive area, as per a report by news agency PTI.
The other members of the team include retired IPS officer Raj Pal Singh; advocate and former member of the National Commission for Women, Charu Wali Khanna; advocate and former registrar of the National Human Rights Commission, O.P. Vyas; senior journalist Sanjeev Nayak; and consultant to the NFRC and NCPCR, Bhavna Bajaj, according to a press statement issued by the committee.
To recall, the fact-finding team had tried to reach Sandeshkhali on February 25, but was stopped midway by the state police, citing prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC as the reason.
A suit was filed at the Calcutta High Court in the matter and on February 28, the single-judge bench of Justice Kaushik Chanda allowed the Central fact-finding team to visit Sandeshkhali. According to the press statement issued by the committee, the team will visit three places in Sandeshkhali on Sunday: Majher Para, Natun Para and the Naskar Para Ras Temple.
“The committee members will interact with the victims of the gruesome incident. After the visit, a final report will be prepared by the committee, which will be submitted to the constitutional authorities of India,” the press statement read.
PM Modi Attacks TMC Over corruption, Sets Target For Bengal BJP
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday stepped up the attack against the Mamata Banerjee government, labelling it as being synonymous with “oppression, dynasty politics, and betrayal” and claiming that the TMC has achieved “mastery” in turning schemes into scams.
Speaking at a rally in Krishnanagar in Nadia district, Modi outlined an ambitious target for the BJP to win all the 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state, emphasising the correlation between West Bengal’s progress and that of the nation.
In the 2019 general elections, the saffron party bagged 18 seats in the state. Modi rallied supporters to “ensure the proliferation of the lotus,” the electoral symbol of the BJP, in every Lok Sabha constituency in the state.
Referring to the incidents in Sandeshkhali, where women have levelled charges of sexual abuse against TMC leaders, Modi accused the state government of abandoning the aggrieved women and instead siding with the accused.
“The people of West Bengal are disappointed by the way the state government is functioning. They have repeatedly given such huge mandates to the TMC with great expectations, but the party has become another name for tyranny, dynasty politics and betrayal. The TMC’s priority is corruption and nepotism, not the development of the state,” he said.
Taking a dig, Modi articulated an acronym for the TMC, asserting it now epitomises ‘Tu, Main, aur Corruption hi Corruption’ (you, me, and corruption). He lambasted the party for appropriating central schemes, branding those as their own, and fostering a culture of “graft and favoritism.”.
“The TMC has tainted the image of West Bengal. It has achieved mastery in turning every scheme into a scam. They put a sticker on the central scheme and call it theirs. They don’t hesitate in snatching from the poor and depriving them,” he said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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