This election season the central probe agencies are caught in the political crossfire between Narendra Modi and Mamata Banerjee.

A team of NIA officials which went to arrest two accused in a blast case from December 2022 were accused of outraging the modesty of the wife of one of the accused, while two top rival leaders were engaged in a war of words.

A case was registered at the Bhupatinagar police station where the woman alleged that she and her husband were assaulted by officers from the NIA, who also molested her. A case has been registered under the IPC sections 354 (outrage of modesty), 354 B (assault on woman), 325 (causing grievous hurt), 427 (mischief), 448 (house trespass), 509 (insult the modesty of women using sound or gesture) and 34 (common intention).

Later in the day, the speeches made by the Prime Minister and the Bengal chief minister were in different parts of Bengal—Modi in Jalpaiguri’s Dhupguri and Mamata in Purulia’s Hura --- made references to the central agencies.

“The NIA is being sent to places where people are protesting. Late in the night when women were sleeping indoors in Gaddar’s (the leader of Opposition, BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari) area, NIA barged into their rooms without informing the local police,” Mamata said in her speech. “In Singur, Nandigram many atrocities were committed by those in khaki uniforms. The women resisted and cases were filed against them.”

Less than two hours later, in Dhupguri, Modi accused the Trinamul of attacking central probe agencies involved mostly in the investigation of graft cases in the state.

“When officials from the central agencies come (to probe in Bengal) they are attacked. The Trinamul Congress is a party that tramples the law and constitution,” Modi said in his speech, without referring to East Midnapore’s Bhupatinagar where NIA officials came under attack on Saturday when they went to arrest two accused in a blast case from December 2022, where three peoples were killed.

Villagers argue with security personnel during an investigation into the 2022 Bhupatinagar blast case by National Investigation Agency (NIA), in Purba Medinipur district PTI

Modi did mention Sandeshkhali, where a team from the Enforcement Directorate had faced a similar attack on January 5 when they went to arrest two district leaders from the ruling Trinamul in connection with a ration distribution scam.

Modi assured the BJP supporters who had assembled to hear him that the probe against the corrupt would be accelerated after the Lok Sabha poll results are declared on June 4.

“The entire country knows what happened in Sandeshkhali. The situation is so bad that the courts have to interfere in almost every matter. Many of these cases were ordered by the BJP's Tamluk candidate Abhijit Ganguly when he was a judge in the Calcutta High Court. The Trinamul’s syndicate raj is so strong that people are forced to bow down before their oppressors,” Modi said. “The Congress, the Left and the Trinamul are trying to protect the corrupt in each other’s parties. But after June 4 action will be taken.”

Mamata alleged the NIA officials in Bengal were knocking at hotels to enquire which rooms are booked by Opposition (Trinamul) leaders.

“The NIA has no right to find out which leader is staying where,” she said. “Days before polls they will incite riots and then send the NIA to investigate. They have been ordered to arrest our local unit functionaries and booth workers.”

On Saturday hours after the incident at Bhupatinagar when the NIA team came under attack following the arrest of two Trinamul local functionaries, Balaicharan Maity and Manobrata Jana, Mamata, in a campaign meeting in Balurghat had said, the NIA team had attacked the women and not the other way round.

“At midnight, NIA officials barged into the homes of people. What is expected? Won’t women fight for their dignity?” she had asked.

The state police promptly took the complaint against the central probe agencies, while no action is yet to be taken against those who attacked the NIA team.

CPM central committee member and Dum Dum candidate Sujan Chakraborty described the fall-out as unfortunate. “What do you expect when the chief minister herself is sending a message that the central agencies cannot act against ruling party members?” asked Chakraborty.

Later in the day, the NIA in a statement released from New Delhi refuted the allegations and dismissed the controversy as unfortunate, claiming its actions were “bona fide, lawful and legallt mandated”.

“The (NIA) team had come under violent attack by an unruly mob when they had gone to conduct searches in Naruabila village in Saturday. The attack was completely unprovoked and uncalled for, and an attempt to obstruct NIA from carrying out its lawful duties,” the statement read.

The NIA has claimed that the raids were carried out in five locations in the present of independent witnesses while the CRPF provided security cover, including lady constables.

The statement said, on April 3, a Special NIA Court on the basis of an application filed by the agency had issued the orders and made it clear that the agency was “at liberty to proceed with the investigation as expeditiously as possible, and to take all necessary action with regard to arrest, search and seizure of the houses of the suspects/accused persons.”