ED searches many Sandeshkhali sites connected to Shahjahan Sheikh in a case involving land appropriation

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided several places in Sandeshkhali, West Bengal, on Thursday in relation to an alleged land-grabbing case against Sheikh Shahjahan, an arrested TMC MLA who was expelled.

In close cooperation with central security personnel, the raids continue today. Among the locations being searched are the homes of suspects connected to the investigation.

These searches were carried out by the agency a few days after Shahjahan’s detention. Shahjahan was apprehended by West Bengal Police early on February 29th from a residence in Minakhan, North 24 Parganas district, in the state where he was hiding. He was charged with sexual assault and stealing land in Sandeshkhali village.

In connection with the same land-grabbing case, the ED conducted raids at almost six different places in West Bengal on February 23.

These searches are included in a recent Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) connected to Shahjahan’s land-grabbing activities, according to agency sources.

The federal agency also carried out two distinct searches on various sites on various days in January in relation to the Public Distribution System (PDS) fraud case, which is one of the cases against Shahjahan.

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During a similar search operation on January 5, ED personnel were ambushed en route to raid the homes of TMC leader Shankar Adhya and Shahjahan in the North 24 Parganas area. Then, the authorities and armed paramilitary forces were surrounded by some 200 villagers who were thought to be supporters of the TMC leader, stopping them from invading Shahjahan’s home. The incident resulted in injuries to two ED personnel.

Following the event, there was a political blame game in which politicians of the Bharatiya Janata Party questioned the state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s government’s handling of law and order, while the TMC accused the agency of inciting the people.

The event prompted the Ministry of Home Affairs to request a thorough report on the assaults from the West Bengal administration.

Shahjahan kept escaping capture before being apprehended; neither state police nor federal agents could find him. A joint Special Investigation Team (SIT) consisting of the West Bengal Police and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was recently directed by the Calcutta High Court to look into an attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers in Sandeshkhali.

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