Arrests in Malda: BJP Panchayat Chief, TMC Leader Held with Illegal Firearm

In the Malda district on Friday night, four people, including the leader of the Trinamool Congress and the BJP chief of a gram panchayat, were detained on suspicion of possessing a gun and ammunition.

The Trinamul leader and the panchayat chief, according to the police, are suspected of being part of a gun-selling ring.

According to sources, Manikchak police were tipped off that illegal firearms would be sold next to a temple near the Haripur football stadium.

A police squad arrived at the location as a result. Some of the people gathered there left after spotting the police. However, six of them were apprehended by the police, who also took possession of a seven millimeter handgun, two magazines, and eight live rounds of ammunition, according to a police official.

Among the six people arrested by the police were Debasish Mondal, the head of the Najirpur gram panchayat in Manikchak block, and Shraban Mondal, a member of the TMC's youth wing's local block committee.

"We believe they were engaged in the unlawful trade of ammunition and weapons. Inspector-in-charge of the Manikchak police station Parthasarathi Haldar stated, "Our officers are looking into the matter.

The sources claim that Sanjib and Ananta Mondal, who have also been taken into custody, arrived at the location to sell Debasish the gun and ammo. According to the sources, Sanjib received ₹12,000 in cash from the panchayat chief, and the money was also taken.

Five cellphones and two motorcycles were also seized by the police on the spot.

The BJP's general secretary for the Malda (south) organisational district, Gourchandra Mondal, said that Debasish's arrest was a part of a plot by the TMC to remove him from his position as panchayat chief. Gourchandra stated, "Trinamool wants to stall development projects in the panchayat."

Leader of the TMC in Malda district Babla Sarkar said that some BJP leaders were connected to gun smugglers in Bihar and Jharkhand. Their arrest by the police is warranted. The arrested Trinamool leader would not have our party's support," declared Sarkar.

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