Arrested ISF’s Bhangar MLA, Nawsad Siddique, on Friday alleged that the Trinamul-led state government was desperate to keep him in custody as it feared defeat in the panchayat polls.

Trinamul denied the charges, claiming that the ISF was too small an entity to be “concerned” about and a “B team of the BJP” that betrayed the faith of minorities.

The ISF MLA, along with 17 party activists, was arrested from Calcutta on January 21 during a demonstration demanding the arrest of Trinamul leader Arabul Islam following a spate of clashes with ruling party supporters in Bhangar.

A city court rejected Nawsad’s bail plea on February 1 and extended his custody till February 15, prompting the ISF to accuse Trinamul of a conspiracy.

On Friday, before Nawsad was produced before the ACJM court in Baruipur by Leather Complex police in connection with an alleged attack on police during a protest in Calcutta on January 21, he told reporters of the “conspiracy”.

Emerging from the prison van, Nawsad said: “The ruling party is afraid before panchayat polls, so they are trying their best to keep me in custody.”

“The vote bank of the ruling party is at stake. My arrest is to prevent its further erosion. They (Trinamul) have for long misled the people, but now people have realised it... Trinamul is fearing defeat. So my arrest is a conspiracy,” Nawsad said.

A senior ISF leader said: “Nawsad is a threat to Trinamul not just in Bhangar but across Bengal. So his arrest is a desperate act by the police before the panchayat elections.”

Trinamul, in reply, accused Nawsad of “joining hands with the BJP”.

Speaking to reporters in Calcutta, Trinamul leader Firhad Hakim said: “We have no intention to malign any religious person. But we must protest if any person under the guise of being a religious leader tries to be a politician and acts to rob the rights of the minorities by joining hands with the BJP.”

He also referred to some news reports that claimed mysterious transactions of hefty amounts of cash in the ISF MLA’s bank account, and some WhatsApp chats reportedly between Nawsad and some prominent BJP leaders during the 2021 Assembly polls.

“There is evidence to prove Nawsad Siddique is working in connivance with the BJP... So far, people knew about his alliance with the CPM and Congress. But it is clear he is a traitor and has joined hands with a party that has always opposed and killed minorities. We seek to know what led to the adjustment with the BJP. We will ask the police to find out the source of the mysterious hefty transactions in his bank account,” Hakim said.

The CPM asked why Leather Complex police took Nawsad in custody for an alleged attack on police in Calcutta.

“The alleged crime occurred in Calcutta. It is a mystery why the Leather Complex police want him in custody,” CPM leader Sujan Chakraborty said.