ED assault case: CBI summons Shahjahan Sheikh's 9 aide in Sandeshkhali

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation has summoned nine persons including some close aides and acquaintances of suspended Trinamool Congress leader Shahjahan Seikh to appear before it on Monday in the case related to the alleged attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in Sandeshkhali on January 5. All the accused have been asked to appear at Nizam Palace, CBI office in Kolkata.

Sheikh was arrested by the West Bengal police on February 29 and was produced in court yesterday, after his 10-day police custody ended. The Basirhat Sub-Divisional Court yesterday sent Sheikh Shahjahan to four-day CBI custody in connection with the January 5 attack on the Enforcement Directorate team in Sandeshkhali. Earlier, on the directive of the Calcutta High Court, the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Kolkata Police handed custody of Sheikh Shahjahan to the CBI.

Issuing a contempt notice to the CID, the high court ruled on Wednesday that the case pertaining to the attack on ED officials be handed over to the CBI along with the custody of the prime accused, Shahjahan.

The court further observed that state police played 'hide and seek' in the matter. "The accused is a political influencer. The investigation should be handed over to the CBI and the custody of the accused by 4:15 pm today," the high court observed.

Apart from the attack on an ED team, which was out raiding his Sandeshkhali residence in connection with the alleged ration scam, Shahjahan is also accused of land grab, extortion and committing excesses on women along with his henchmen. The women of Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district erupted in violent protests and came out on the streets, accusing Shahjahan and his aides of grave excesses and atrocities. Multiple women in the island accused Shajahan and his aides of "land-grab and sexual assault" under coercion.