Video: TMC leader hides under bed as angry locals demand refund over 'housing fraud'
Police rescued Sahidul Miah after villagers surrounded his house over alleged housing scheme payments. The episode has sharpened focus on extortion allegations involving Trinamool Congress functionaries in West Bengal.
A local Trinamool Congress leader-cum-civic volunteer was pulled out from under a bed by police after allegedly trying to escape an angry group of villagers demanding refund of money linked to a housing scheme, officials said.
The incident took place in the Jorparki Gram Panchayat area under Mathabhanga I Block and was captured on video, which has since circulated widely on social media.
The leader, identified as Sahidul Miah, is accused of collecting money from local residents on the promise of allotting government houses under a housing scheme. Locals alleged that the funds were taken as "cut money" and no benefits were delivered.
Tension had been building in the area since May 25, when a group of women first staged a protest outside Miah's residence, demanding their money back. The situation escalated on Wednesday when a larger group gathered again at his house, effectively trapping him inside.
As the protest intensified, Miah reportedly moved into a bedroom and hid under a cot to avoid confrontation. Police from nearby station reached the spot after being alerted to the unrest and found him hiding under the bed. He was then pulled out and escorted to safety.
According to residents, the accused allegedly collected bribes ranging between Rs 5,000 and Rs 20,000 from multiple beneficiaries, with total collections estimated at nearly Rs 8 lakh. The money, they claimed, was taken in exchange for promises of government housing allotments that never materialised.
"He took thousands from poor families promising houses that never came. We just want our money back," a local resident told India Today TV.
Following the rescue, police took Miah to the Mathabhanga police station. Officials said an investigation into the allegations of extortion is underway.
The incident came amid an intensified crackdown across West Bengal targeting Trinamool Congress leaders amid multiple allegations ranging from corruption and extortion to serious criminal offences, including assault.
On Wednesday, a councillor of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation was arrested on charges of assaulting and molesting a woman in the city. The accused, Biswajit Mondal, who represents Ward No. 114, was taken into custody after a complaint was filed by a woman from the Purba Putiary area at Regent Park police station on June 1, a senior police officer said.
In her complaint, the woman also alleged that after the change of government in the state last month, Mondal verbally abused her and issued threats of dire consequences.
The arrest is part of a broader string of detentions involving civic body representatives in recent weeks. Several KMC councillors have been booked on allegations including extortion, intimidation and corruption.
On June 2, councillors Arijit Das Thakur of Ward No. 106 and Sachin Singh of Ward No. 36 were arrested in separate cases linked to alleged extortion. A day later, Mahesh Kumar Sharma, councillor of Ward No. 2, was also arrested on charges of extortion and criminal intimidation.