Senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari along with several other party MLAs were prevented from visiting the restive Sandeshkhali area on Monday afternoon. The police cited prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC imposed in the region as the reason for the obstruction.
Earlier in the day, six BJP legislators, including Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, were suspended from the West Bengal Assembly for staging protests regarding the unrest in Sandeshkhali, situated in North 24 Parganas district.
Following their suspension, Adhikari, along with other BJP MLAs, attempted to visit the locals of Sandeshkhali, who have raised allegations of sexual harassment against absconding TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters.
However, their efforts were thwarted as authorities halted them at Basanti Highway, citing the prohibitory orders in place. Adhikari highlighted the absurdity of being stopped 65 km away from Sandeshkhali due to supposed concerns about law and order, condemning the state government's actions as an attempt to suppress the truth.
The unrest in Sandeshkhali stemmed from allegations made by a large number of women, who accused local TMC leader Sheikh Shajahan and his associates of forcefully capturing land and sexually harassing them.
The demand for Shajahan's arrest intensified after he went into hiding following an attack on an Enforcement Directorate (ED) team that had gone to raid his house in connection with an alleged ration scam.
