Birbhum victims hacked before being set on fire, alleges TMC leader

BOGTUI: Eight victims of the March 21 massacre at Bogtui village in Bengal’s Birbhum district were hacked with sharp weapons such as axes before being set on fire, a Trinamool Congress (TMC) member of the local Barshal village panchayat and the son of one of the dead women have alleged.

Most of the victims were women; two were children. The state government has not given out their identities yet.

The massacre was allegedly carried out in retaliation by followers and relatives of Bhadu Sheikh, the deputy chief of the Barshal panchayat, shortly after he was gunned down by his rivals.

At least eight houses were set on fire. Fire brigade personnel found seven charred bodies from the home of Fatik Sheikh and rescued three people from the house of Sanju Sheikh, of whom one died in hospital.

Newton Sheikh, a member of the Barshal panchayat, alleged in a video message on Thursday that the women were hacked first.

In the video, the authenticity of which was not verified by HT, Newton Sheikh can be heard saying that the women were hacked before they were doused with petrol and set on fire.

In another video, which was being widely circulated in Birbhum district, Bhasan Sheikh, son of one of the victims, Mina Bibi, said that his mother was hacked with axes before she was charred to death.

Bhasan Sheikh alleged in the video that his mother suffered blows to the head and abdomen. “This was witnessed by my nephew and niece who were hiding in a bush,” Bhasan Sheikh said in the video that was shared on social media.

Bhadu Sheikh, whose murder appeared to have triggered the revenge attack, was targeted at around 8.30pm on March 21. He died of bomb and bullet injuries. The massacre started around 10.30 pm, according to Kajal Sheikh and other villagers.

“The attackers hurled several bombs at the houses that they targeted. They not only poured petrol on the walls but also used chemicals that are used in crude bombs,” Kajal Sheikh said.

No district police official commented on the findings of the post mortem. A district health department official however told HT said doctors who conducted it had seen signs of bone injury in two of the bodies.

This was the first massacre in the TMC regime since the party came to power in 2011. 23 people have been arrested.

The state government formed a special investigation team (SIT) and removed two local police officers from duty on March 22 when director general of police Manoj Malviya said: “It was personal enmity between two groups that might have led to the murder of Bhadu Sheikh. It is being investigated whether the incidents that took place later were an act of retaliation. No political rivalry was involved in this.”

Bhadu Sheikh’s brother, Babar Sheikh, was shot dead in January last year in the same village.