The BJP fielded Union minister for women and child development Smriti Irani in Delhi on Monday to turn Sandeshkhali into a national issue ahead of Lok Sabha polls.

Steeped in communal overtones, Irani gave her version of the alleged sexual assault of women by Trinamul leaders — Shahjahan Sheikh, Shibaprasad Hazra and Uttam Sardar — in Bengali before translating it into English and Hindi.

“...married women are being targeted deliberately.... The plight cannot be articulated in mere words,” she said while reading out a version of a “victim” purportedly narrated to a local reporter.

The Mamata Banerjee administration deployed deputy inspector-general, Barasat range, Sumit Kumar, to counter the Union minister’s claims in a news meet. Kumar told the media that four complaints had been registered with Sandeshkhali police “but none of rape”.

He, however, said legal steps would be taken if any written complaint was lodged and added that on the state government’s advice an all-women police team would speak to women in Sandeshkhali.

While Irani held fort in Delhi, the pitch for her news meet was set earlier in the day when BJP legislators led by Suvendu Adhikari raised the Sandeshkhali issue in the Bengal Assembly.

BJP MLAs entered the House wearing T-shirts with “Sandeshkhali sathey achhi (we are with Sandeshkhali)” and demanded a statement from chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

Speaker Biman Banerjee suspended Adhikari and five other BJP MLA for the rest of the budget session for “unruly” behaviour, who, however, termed the suspension “a badge of honour”.

“I will speak about women tortured by Trinamul goons,” Adhikari said before leaving for Sandeshkhali with a bus full of BJP MLAs, but were stopped by the police 60km from their destination.

Governor C.V. Ananda Bose reached Calcutta from Kerala and rushed to Sandeshkhali from the airport.