Trinamul Congress leaders on Wednesday demanded the arrest of Union minister Smriti Irani and BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia for spreading lies to malign the Bengal government and delivering hate speeches to instigate people over the situation in Sandeshkhali. Speaking to the media, Mr Kunal Ghosh, state general secretary of the Trinamul Congress and Dr Shashi Panja , state minister for Women and Child Development and Social Welfare alleged that the BJP is deliberately spreading lies to confuse people and create an atmosphere of fear among the people of Sandeshkhali.

Mr Ghosh said while the BJP leaders from Delhi had alleged that women had been raped in Sandeshkhali, a team of the National Commission for Women who had visited Sandeshkhali did not find any such incident. “BJP will not be able to break Bengal with such nasty tactics,” he said. Dr Panja said: “Those who live in glass houses should not throw at others. Before asking Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to resign over Sandeshkhali, the BJP leaders should see their own past track record. On 19 February 2019 the Pulwama incident took place and no inquiry was done.

The Prime Minister did not resign after the incident.” She said the BJP does not have any right to criticise the Bengal government. “Smriti Irani who talks big was see sitting beside the person against whom charges of rape had been framed. Farmers committed suicide but the agriculture minister did not say a word. In Chopra in north Dinajpur, four children recently died but the Union home minister Amit Shah is silent over the issue.” She said a Trinamul Congress delegation met the family members of the four deceased children and handed over financial assistance on the instructions of Mr Abhishek Banerjee, the party’s national general secretary.

She urged Mr Arun Halder, chairman (in-charge) of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes not to visit Sandeshkhali, suggesting he should instead have visited Madhya Pradesh where a tribal shop owner was abused by BJP workers. “In UP, Maharastra, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana the incidents of abuse of women are highest. Highest number of child abuse are reported from Assam and Haryana,” she said. She said a team of the state Women Commission had visited Sandeshkhali and a team of women police officers is visiting the area.

She said: “The BJP is deliberately trying to disturb the otherwise peaceful area by spreading canards in an attempt to malign the state government. “Jungle raj has been established in the double engine states and not in Bengal where the only woman chief minister in the country has carried out all-round development of Bengal,” she said.