Sandeshkhali incident has put entire humanity to shame: BJP's Vanathi Srinivasan

CHENNAI: Sandeshkhali incident in West Bengal has not only put entire humanity to shame but has also completely exposed Mamata Banerjee's "failure to fulfil her responsibilities as a woman and chief minister," BJP Mahila Morcha national president Vanathi Srinivasan alleged here on Tuesday.

"What has happened in Sandeshkhali has not only put entire humanity to shame but has also completely exposed the dilapidated law and order of the state of West Bengal. The most disturbing part of this incident is that all this is happening in a state whose chief minister herself is a woman. But she has completely failed to fulfil her responsibilities as both a woman and a chief minister," she said.

Srinivasan said a time when the entire country is witnessing the euphoria of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Sandeshkhali in West Bengal has been witnessing large-scale unrest since February 8. She added women of Sundarban village are protesting against local Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his associates, alleging systemic rape, land grabbing, non-payment of dues and a close criminal-Bengal police nexus.

"At a time when the entire country is witnessing the euphoria of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Sandeshkhali in West Bengal has been witnessing large-scale unrest since February 8. Women of Sundarban village are protesting against local Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and strongman Sheikh Shahjahan and his associates. They have alleged systemic rape, land grabbing, non-payment of dues and a close criminal-Bengal police nexus. It has been more than a month since Zilla Parishad member Sheikh Shahjahan absconded," she said.

"Sheikh Shahjahan's name cropped up in the national media when the Enforcement Directorate visited Sandeshkhali to question him in connection with its probe into the grain scam. The visiting ED team was attacked by Sheikh Shahjahan's goons. Since then, he has been absconding, which gave courage to the victimised women to come forward and demand justice for the atrocities," the BJP leader said.

She also claimed that West Bengal has become a "party state," wherein the ruling party, TMC, is "considered above the government." To avail the benefits of government schemes, "the common man has to go to the office of the ruling party instead to the government office," she claimed. "Bengal has been considered a symbol of India's intellectual capacity and progressiveness.

But with the way the Left and then the TMC (mis)ruled Bengal for the past several decades, the social, economic and administrative fabrics have become completely disorganised.

These two parties have turned West Bengal into what is termed a 'party state' in political science. In this system, the ruling party and the government become synonymous with each other and the orders of the party and its officials are considered above the policies of the government and even the government officials.

To avail the benefits of government schemes, the common man has to go to the office of the ruling party instead of the government office, where no work can be done without lining the pockets of the local party leaders. Be it an appointment as a professor in universities or even getting employment under MGNREGA, neither qualification nor necessity is the basis for obtaining anything from the state. Loyalty to the party is the only standard through which something can be achieved," she said.

Srinivasan also targeted TMC MP Nusrat Jahan for her silence over the Sandeshkhali issue and said, "Being a woman leader, shouldn't she ask the top leadership of her party how the goons of her own party call a woman to the party office at night and threaten her if she protests?" "In such a system, corruption becomes an integral part of everyday life. For the smooth running of the system, political parties also bow down at the feet of local goons and musclemen to win elections, as the TMC government did before Sheikh Shahjahan, who snatched away the lands of the farmers of Sandeshkhali and converted them into ponds for fish farming.

Basirhat Lok Sabha, under which Sandeshkhali falls, also has a strong woman, Bengali actress Nusrat Jahan, who is also a TMC worker. However, neither has she given any statement on this entire issue nor has she toured the place to know the condition of the victimised women. Being a woman leader, shouldn't she ask the top leadership of her party how the goons of her own party call a woman to the party office at night and threaten her if she protests? But she won't ask because the public and the leaders have no relation with each other in the TMC government," the BJP leader said.

Targeting Mamata's nephew and TMC's General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, Srinivasan said, "Sheikh Shahjahan is still absconding from the custody of the Bengal Police, which is proof that the police administration of Bengal is also behaving like TMC workers. What's more, the Calcutta High Court has also made it clear that there is no ban on the arrest of Sheikh Shahjahan. This has also exposed the lie of Trinamool Congress General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, who has been arguing that the Bengal Police is not able to arrest Shahjahan due to the orders of the Calcutta High Court," she said.

"The WB police, by preventing the leaders of the BJP and other opposition parties from going to Sandeshkhali and by arresting an independent journalist who was reporting on this issue, have clearly shown that democracy has been murdered in broad daylight by the Mamata government in West Bengal and what is left is the dictatorship of Didi," she added.