The political battle over the alleged harassment of a Bengali-speaking migrant family in Delhi has intensified, with the Trinamool Congress now threatening legal action against the Delhi police. The party presented the affected Malda-based family before the media at Trinamool Bhavan on Wednesday to back Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s claims of mistreatment.
The issue erupted after Mamata posted a video on X alleging that Delhi Police had assaulted a Bengali child from Malda. While the Delhi police dismissed the allegations as false and fabricated, the TMC has doubled down, accusing the capital’s law enforcement agency of harassment, extortion and now attempting a cover-up.
TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, "After the Chief Minister made the issue public, Delhi police is trying to disprove her. We strongly condemn this. Legal action is being considered. The family will lodge a complaint with Kolkata police against Delhi police. First, they tortured them and now they are busy whitewashing the incident.”
Sajnu Parveen, the mother of the assaulted child, narrated her ordeal. A resident of Chanchol in Malda, Sajnu said her husband, Moktar Khan, has been living in Delhi with the family for several years.
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She claimed that four men, identifying themselves as police officers, arrived at their Delhi residence one day asking for Aadhaar cards. Even after showing proper identification, the men allegedly called her “Bangladeshi” and told her not to leave the area.
The next day, a group of six, including two women, allegedly took Sajnu and her son to another location where she said the harassment escalated.
“I kept saying I am from Malda, not Bangladesh. But they wouldn’t listen. They asked me to call my husband and then started beating me,” Sajnu said, adding that her son was also beaten, kicked in the stomach and began bleeding from the ear.
She further alleged that she was told she would be freed only if she chanted “Jai Shri Ram.” When she refused, she was allegedly slapped. Later, she claimed the attackers demanded Rs 25,000 for their release. “Despite giving the money, we were taken to the police station, where the torture allegedly continued,” alleged Sajnu.
Sajnu's father-in-law, who was also present, denied claims that the family acted under external influence, calling the incident genuine.
Sajnu also questioned the authenticity of the CCTV footage circulated by the Delhi police, claiming that the clips being shown were not from the time of the assault but only from when the family was leaving. “The real footage, where we were being beaten, is not being released,” she said.
Kolkata’s Mayor Firhad Hakim, who joined Ghosh, announced that the family would be sent back safely to Malda and would be provided with all possible government assistance as promised by the Chief Minister.
“If an FIR is filed against the Chief Minister, we will retaliate. The state will not remain silent,” Firhad said.
The issue has taken centre stage in West Bengal politics, with the Bharatiya Janata Party, including MP Suvendu Adhikari, accusing Mamata of false propaganda and threatening to file a complaint in Delhi against her. Adhikari has maintained that the family staged the incident at the instigation of political actors from Malda.
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