Sandeshkhali violence accused Shahjahan Sheikh sent to 10-day police custody

Sandeshkhali accused Shahjahan Sheikh sent to 10 days in police custody by a court in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on Thursday.

Sheikh was produced before the court in Basirhat around 10.40 am after his arrest from Minakhan in the early hours. The state police sought 14 days of custody, but the court granted 10 days.

Trinamool strongman is accused of land grabbing in trouble-torn Sandeshkhali and sexual torture of women of the village.

The arrest comes after the Calcutta High Court on Monday ordered that Sheikh's name be added to the Sandeshkhali case, and clarified that there was no stay on his arrest. Further, on Wednesday, the HC said Sheikh can be arrested by the CBI, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) or the West Bengal Police.

The ruling Trinamool Congress hailed the arrest and said it was possible only after the court cleared the decks and accused the opposition of exploiting the earlier "embargo" on his arrest.

"Due to a legal tangle, he couldn't be arrested initially. However, after the court clarified that there was no stay on his arrest, the West Bengal Police did its job. The opposition had earlier exploited the embargo on his arrest," TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh told PTI.

The opposition BJP, which had claimed that Sheikh was in "safe custody" of state police since Tuesday night, dubbed the arrest as scripted.

"It was TMC and the state police which were shielding the culprits. He has been arrested now as a part of a well-scripted story," BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.

The riverine Sandeshkhali area -- situated on the borders of the Sundarbans, about 100 kilometres from Kolkata -- has been on the boil for more than a month with protests over allegations of sexual abuse and land grab against local TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters.

The unrest in the area stems from accusations against Sheikh and his supporters of land grabbing and sexual assault with the local TMC strongman evading authorities since a mob attack on Enforcement Directorate officials on January 5.