CBI SEIZES ARMS INCLUDING FOREIGN-MADE PISTOLS, AMMUNITION IN SANDESKHALI RAID

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday carried out raids at two premises in West Bengal’s Sandeshkhali from where it seized and recovered several arms and ammunition in connection with its probe into an attack on a team of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) by a mob on instigated by suspended Trinamool Congress leader Shahjahan Sheikh on January 5, people familiar with the development said. 

Agency officials said the raids were carried out by five teams with the support of the local police and central forces in Sandeshkhali of North 24 Parganas district. 

They said information was received about the stockpiling of a huge cache of arms and ammunition, and explosives by some suspects. 

“We have recovered 12 firearms, including foreign-made pistols, during the searches. Besides, explosives stacked inside boxes, have also been found during the searches,” said an officer, who did not want to be named. 

The National Security Guard (NSG) had to be called in during the raids to detect if any explosive items needed to be defused. 

On January 5, an ED team was attacked in Sandeshkhali where it had gone to raid the premises of Shahjahan in connection with an alleged ration scam. The attack is being probed by the CBI on the orders of Calcutta high court. 

“During the investigation of this case, information was received that the items lost by the ED team and other incriminating articles may be hidden at the residence of an associate of Shahjahan at Sandeshkhali. Accordingly, the team of CBI along with Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel searched two premises at Sandeshkhali”, a CBI spokesperson said.

During the searches, the spokesperson said, several weapons including three foreign-made revolvers, one Indian revolver, one Colt official police revolver, one foreign-made pistol, one countrymade pistol, 120 bullets of 9mm, 50 cartridges of .45 calibre, 120 cartridges of 9mm etc., were recovered.

“Besides, many incriminating documents related to Shahjahan have also been recovered. Some items suspected to be country-made bombs have also been recovered which are being handled and disposed of by the teams from NSG,” the spokesperson added. He said the searches were still continuing. 

Shahjahan was arrested by the West Bengal Police on February 29 in connection with the attack by around 1,000 people, in which three ED officials were injured. 

The suspended TMC leader was on the run following the incident for almost two months before he was caught by the state police on February 29 and was later handed over to the CBI. 

ED has claimed that Shahjahan had links with the arrested state food minister of Bengal, Jyoti Priya Mallick. The agency has claimed that in the ration distribution scam, the proceeds of the crime amounted to Rs.9,000-10,000 crore, of which an amount of Rs.2,000 crore was suspected to be transferred to Dubai either directly or through Bangladesh. 

The financial crimes probe agency’s probe is based on various first information reports (FIRs) filed by West Bengal police, wherein various private persons were found in unauthorised possession of ration meant for delivery through PDS and also found to be involved in bogus procurement of paddy. 

The ED sleuths have identified three modus operandi for the generation of proceeds of crime (PoC) related to PDS scam – siphoning of PDS ration in the open market, mixing of old wheat flour in fresh flour meant for PDS distribution and bogus paddy procurement at MSP. 

On the high court’s order, the CBI is also investigating the incidents of sexual assault with several women and incidents of land grabbing in Sandeshkhali by Sheikh and his associates. The federal agency registered its first case in land grabbing and sexual assault on Thursday. 

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2024-04-26T14:27:21Z dg43tfdfdgfd