"Mamata known for genocide of Hindus": Smriti Irani over Sandeshkhali issue

New Delhi: In a no-holds-barred attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the Sandeshkhali issue, Union Minister Smriti Irani alleged on Monday that the TMC chief is known for the 'genocide' of Hindus.

"The women of Sandeshkhali are crying out for help and protection. Mamata Bandopadhyay is known for the genocide of Hindu women, and she will now allow her men to pick out Hindu young married women to be raped night after night in the TMC office," Irani said while addressing the media here in the national capital.

"Women belonging to the SC/ST community from West Bengal's Sandeshkhali have informed media that Men of the TMC party will come to homes and check which woman is beautiful. The women of Sandeshkhali have told to journalists regarding the intention of TMC leaders and their conversation with the husbands of women who are crying out for help. TMC leaders told husbands of these particular Hindu women that, 'You can be a husband by name only, but you will now have no rights'," she added.

The Union Minister furthet said, "The Bangla women have informed journalists about the TMC, 'They will take us night after night. Till the time, the TMC men were not satisfied; night after night, you have no escape'.

"The question is, can we, as citizens, be mute speculators? Who is this man who is charged by the women of Sandeshkhali with mass rape of Bengali Hindu women? I say this because the women of Sandeshkhali, when they spoke to the media locally, said that they were particularly identified as being married and Hindu. Till now, everybody has been wondering who Sheikh Shahjahan is," she added.

Smriti Irani also highlighted the incident when ED officers were attacked earlier last month, in the North 24 Parganas district while they were to search the premises of TMC leader Sheikh Shahkjahan in an alleged ration scam case.

However, Shahjahan has been absconding since the incident took place.

"The last time you heard this name was when ED officers were 'gheraod', injured and pelted with bricks and stones. The ED made a statement that three of their officers suffered injuries that were intended to cause death. Mamata Bandopadhyay, you have traded the dignity of SC/ST, fisehrmen families and the farming communities and their women for your political benefit," Irani said.

"Where is Sheikh Shahjahan? And for those women of Sandeshkhali who came out to talk to the media only so that they could draw attention to their plight, Section 144 now applicable in Sandeshkhali so that those women have no opportunities to assemble and speak to the media," she added.

The union minister further appealed to the media to draw attention to the alleged incidents in Sandeshkhali village.

"Those in the media who work freely and fairly, hear the voice of the women of Sandeshkhali and ask, where is Sheikh Shahjahan? Why would Mamata allow a door-to-door search by TMC goons so that Hindu women can be identified and continuously raped?" she said.

Earlier, locals, particularly women, marched through various sections of Sandeshkhali, carrying slippers in their hands, demanding the arrest of TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh in an alleged land ration allotment scam and the alleged rape incidents.

As per reports, Section 144 is also imposed in some sections of the village following the protests by the locals.