BJP vs Trinamool over Sandeshkhali sting: 'Conspiracy, scripted allegations'

Bengal Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari called the video in Sandeshkhali sting "doctored" and said it was orchestrated by the ruling Trinamool Congress after sensing defeat in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

"We will go deeper with the matter. The primary issue in Sandeskhali is the agony of women and elderly people...There have been hundreds of complaints by women, and rape and molestation charges are there. Are these all false? It (video) was committed with malafide intention," Adhikari told reporters.

Mocking Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, Adhikari further stated that he has "clearly rattled" the aunt-nephew duo.

"There will be more. I will make them dance even more. I will make the aunt (referring to Mamata Banerjee) a former (Chief Minister) and will send her beloved nephew - involved in coal scam, sand scam, cow smuggling, teachers recruitment scam - to jail," Suvendu Adhikari said.

The BJP leader added that Gangadhar Kayal, the man who features in the video, has already lodged a complaint with the CBI, claiming it was morphed and edited. The federal agency is investigating the Sandeshkhali sexual abuse complaints on an order of the Calcutta High Court.

Adhikari also shared a clip of Kayal on X, saying a "twisted and misleading" version of a truth has a "very, very short shelf life".

Kayal, a BJP mandala president in Sandeshkhali, could be purportedly heard in the video saying that the entire Sandeshkhali ordeal has been conspired by Suvendu Adhikari.

India Today couldn't independently verify the authenticity of the video.

In his written complaint to the CBI, Kayal said the video was uploaded from an unverified YouTube channel owned by someone named 'Williams'. "It can be seen that the same (footage) has been made using my face and the voice has been moduled using Artificial Intelligence (AI) so that it can mislead the public at large," he added.

The BJP mandal president also provided the link to the YouTube video.

He further mentioned in his letter that the video was made to "safeguard the actual culprits of Sandeshkhali incidents by shifting the blame and the burden to the person who stood by the victims of the Sandeshkhali incident and also to disturb the ongoing investigation conducted by the CBI".

The recent development has triggered a war of words between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress.

Mamata Banerjee said the entire Sandeshkhali episode was "pre-planned" and the BJP "had scripted it well". "The truth has been exposed. I have been saying this for a long time. I have not seen the entire video. I will definitely see it," the Chief Minister added.

Abhishek Banerjee said during a press briefing in Kolkata on Saturday that he never thought the "politics of Bengal would stoop so low to get votes".

"We have been saying from day one that a shameless attempt was made to malign Bengal ahead of the elections," he added.

Abhishek Banerjee alleged that to create ground for the imposition of Article 355 (Duty of the Union to protect states against external aggression and internal disturbance) in Bengal, Suvendu Adhikari instrumented the entire Sandeshkhali episode. The Trinamool MP also demanded an "apology" from the top BJP leadership within 48 hours.

Denying any role by the TMC in the alleged video, Banerjee said, “I am sure some independent journalists have done it. And they did a commendable job. Let the people of Bengal decide on the veracity of the video. It is in public domain."

Abhishek Banerjee also claimed that Gangadhar Kayal had confirmed on Saturday morning that it was indeed his voice in the video, but pressure from the party top brass made him invoke the AI theory later.

It is claimed in the video that several women were given Rs 2,000 each to file complaints of atrocities against them. "It is shameful that the BJP thinks it will win polls by selling the honour of women of Bengal at the cost of Rs 2,000," Abhishek Banerjee said.

He denied any role by the Trinamool Congress in the sting. "I am sure some independent journalists have done it. And they did a commendable job. Let the people of Bengal decide on the veracity of the video. It is in the public domain," he added.

Several women have complained and held protests at the beginning of the year over sexual assault and land grab cases against now-suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his aides. Shahjahan is currently in jail in the case of an attack on a team of the Enforcement Directorate. He was caught after being on the run for 55 days.

(With inputs from PTI)