Calcutta High Court: Various PIL’s were filed seeking independent probe into the reported incidents of rape, sexual exploitation, and land grabbing allegedly perpetrated by individuals linked to Shahjahan Sheikh and his associates in Sandeshkhali, a village in 24 North Parganas District of West Bengal. A division bench of TS Sivagnanam and Hiranmay Bhattacharya, JJ., directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to undertake a comprehensive probe into these allegations emphasizing the gravity of the accusations, and further directed the CBI to submit a report for court-monitored investigation.
The case involved allegations of rape of women and land grabbing by individuals associated with local leader of Trinamool Congress (TMC) Shahjahan Sheikh in Sandeshkhali, a region in West Bengal, India. The situation gained national attention after an attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials by Shahjahan’s supporters. The attack on the ED convoy prompted the Calcutta High Court to intervene and transfer the probe into the incident to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Subsequently, the Court began considering various Public Interest Litigations (PILs) seeking an independent investigation into the broader allegations of rape and land grabbing in the region.
[Court on its own motion v State of West Bengal]
Source: Press
