Sheikh Shahjahan's arrest video viral; 'See his body language,' BJP's jibe

Sheikh Shahjahan was escorted by the West Bengal police like a state guest when he entered the court on Thursday morning, BJP leaders said.

Updated on: Feb 29, 2024, 18:44:13 IST

By HT News Desk

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Hours after Trinamool strongman Sheikh Shahjahan was arrested and sent to 10-day police custody, the BJP flagged his body language vis-a-vis the body language of the West Bengal police and said it was clear that Shahjahan was being protected by Mamata Banerjee's police and now again the police custody sends him to the 'mehman-nawazi' of the West Bengal police. The video of Shahjahan walking towards the courtroom and gesturing something with his hand went viral.

Sheikh Shahjahan's hand gesture when he was produced at the court. BJP said his confidence proved that he was in safe custody of the party. (PTI)

BJP's national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala questioned whether Shahjahan was arrested or a state guest or a VIP. "Look at the arrogance & confidence of Shahjahan - the villain of Sandeshkhali. Is his man arrested or is he a state guest & VIP? It is clear he was defended & protected for 50 days & now to escape from central agencies Bengal police is treating him like VIP on TMC instructions," Shehzad said sharing the video.

“Is this an arrest? WB Police is escorting Sheikh Shahjahan like they would escort CM Mamata Banerjee. All these days, Sheikh Shahjahan was under the protection of WB Police. As soon as Calcutta High Court allowed ED and CBI to arrest Sheikh Shahjahan, Mamata Banerjee’s police took control of him. They hurriedly took him to a local Court, to preclude ED and CBI lawyers from getting in. No wonder women of #Sandeshkhali have no faith in Mamata Banerjee,” BJP's IT cell chief Amit Malviya said.

In the early hours on Thursday, Shahjan was arrested from Minakah in North 24 Parganas district days after a hunt was on -- for he is the main accused of several cases of sexual assault and lang grabbing in North 24 Parganas' Sandeshkhali where women have been protesting against him. His arrest however is not in connection with these complaints -- but for assault on ED officials on January 5 during a raid at his house. Shahjahan has been missing since then.

"I am using the mehman-nawazi word for a specific reason. See the body language of Shahjahan and that of the police. Is this the body language of a culprit?" BJP MP and party spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said.

The delay in the arrest of Shahjahan while Sandeshkhali was on fire invited criticism for the Trinamool government. On Wednesday, the Calcutta high court ruled that the CBI and the ED can arrest Shahjahan since he could not be "apprehended for a substantial period of time". West Bengal police arrested Shahjahan hours after the court order and the BJP said everything was pre-mediated and the sudden arrest was only to shield Shahjahan from ED or CBI.

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HT News Desk
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