'Sandeshkhali Still Burning': Rekha Patra Erupts After 5 Security Personnel Shot In Post-Poll Violence

New Delhi: Fresh post-poll violence has once again rocked Sandeshkhali in West Bengal, with five security personnel - including CRPF jawans and police officers - sustaining bullet injuries after unidentified attackers opened fire during a late-night patrol. The incident took place in the Baman Gheri area under the Nazat Police Station limits, just days after the 2026 West Bengal Assembly election results.

According to reports, tension had been simmering in the area since afternoon amid political clashes following the election outcome. A police team accompanied by central security forces had gone on routine night patrol when they allegedly came under sudden gunfire attack.

Those injured include Nazat Police Station Officer-in-Charge Bharat Purkait, Rajbari Outpost officer Bhaswat Goswami, a woman police officer, and two CRPF jawans. All five were first shifted to Minakha Rural Hospital before being referred to hospitals in Kolkata due to the seriousness of their injuries. Security has since been intensified across Sandeshkhali.

Reacting sharply to the incident, newly elected BJP MLA and Sandeshkhali survivor Rekha Patra accused the Bengal Police of acting in favour of the TMC and failing to take action against those allegedly involved in the violence.

Patra claimed that anti-social elements were still operating freely in Sandeshkhali and demanded immediate arrests. She alleged that local women were being threatened and said residents no longer trusted the state police.

“The police has forgotten its duty. The state police is working for TMC,” Patra said during her interaction, while also demanding stronger intervention by central forces in the region.

Rekha Patra had emerged as one of the strongest faces of the Sandeshkhali protests during the massive political and social unrest that shook the region earlier. She was among the women who publicly accused local strongmen linked to suspended TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his aides of intimidation, land grabbing and atrocities against women.

During the earlier phase of clashes and protests in Sandeshkhali, Patra had survived violent unrest and continued leading demonstrations despite alleged threats and attacks. Her rise from survivor to political face of the movement turned her into a key BJP figure in Bengal politics.

Following the Sandeshkhali movement, the BJP fielded Rekha Patra electorally, and she recently won the Assembly election, becoming one of the most high-profile political faces from the violence-hit region.

The latest firing incident has once again brought Sandeshkhali back into the political spotlight, with the BJP accusing the Mamata Banerjee government of failing to restore law and order despite repeated violence in the area.

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