Birbhum killings: TMC leader named as main accused, sent to 14 days in custody

Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Anarul Hossain on Friday was remanded to 14-day police custody after police informed a Birbhum court that he is the main conspirator behind the killing of eight people earlier this week.

Eight people, including two children, were charred to death when eight houses were set ablaze in Bogtui village late on Monday night, in what is suspected to be the violent fallout of the murder of a ruling TMC panchayat office-bearer Bhadu Sheikh. Four people, who sustained burn injuries, are undergoing treatment at a state-run hospital in Rampurhat.

Hossain, TMC’s community block unit president at Rampurhat, was arrested on Thursday following orders from chief minister Mamata Banerjee. The61-year-old, Banerjee alleged, had not paid proper attention to the apprehension of locals about a possible disturbance in the area, leading to the carnage.

Producing the accused before Rampurhat sub-divisional court, police said Hossain was charged under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 436 (destroying building using fire or explosives), 435 (use of fire or explosives) and 427 (causing loss or damage) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The TMC leader was named as the main conspirator by 21 people arrested so far,lawyers who attended the hearing said. Two more arrests were made on Friday.

The police’s submission before the court came hours after the Calcutta high court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to take over the case and ordered the West Bengal government to extend full cooperation in the matter. The case was being probed by a special investigation team (SIT) formed by the state.

Hossain, however, ruled out his involvement in the case.

“I surrendered to the police because Mamata Banerjee asked me to. I am innocent,” Hossain told the media while being taken to the court.

The TMC leader’s petition for bail, which cited his age and health problems, was turned down by the court, his lawyer Ashok Banerjee said.

TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said Hossain’s arrest proved that the state is serious about punishing the guilty.

Bengal BJP’s chief spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said Hossain was only a small player in the conspiracy and it was left to the CBI to unravel the truth.