West Bengal: NSG Team Reaches Sandeshkhali After CBI Seizes Foreign-Made Arms; BJP Calls It 'Act Of Terror'

A team of National Security Guard comandoes reached Sandeshkhali on Friday hours after he Central Bureau of Investigation seized arms and ammunition, such as foreign-manufactured firearms during searches at two premises of an associate of now-suspended TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali.

According to PTI, the CBI conducted these searches in connection with an attack on Enforcement Directorate officers in the same area on January 5.

Reportedly, teams of the Central Bureau Investigation (CBI), the bomb detection squad, the National Security Guard (NSG), the central paramilitary forces and the West Bengal Police were part of the searches at Sandeshkhali.

CBI Statement On Raid

The CBI on Friday in a statement said, "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 Sheikh at Sandeshkhali, North 24 Parganas. Accordingly, the team of the CBI along with CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) personnel searched two premises at Sandeshkhali today."

The statement further added the details of their findings from the raid, it said - three foreign-made revolvers and one foreign-made pistol, one Indian revolver, one Colt official issue police revolver, one country-made pistol, 120 nine mm bullets, 50 cartridges of .45 calibre, 120 nine mm cartridges, 50 cartridges of .380 and eight cartridges of .32 were seized.

"Besides, many incriminating documents related to Shajahan have also been found. Some items, suspected to be country-made bombs, have also been seized and those are being handled and disposed of by the teams of the NSG," it added.

Location Of CBI Raid

The raid was conducted in the house of Abu Taleb Mollah who is a relative of Sheikh, reportedly.

The officials are still trying to find out why such a large amount of weapons, ammunition, and explosives were stored in the house.

Security forces cordoned off the house, which was constructed near water bodies used for fish farming. Central forces used metal detectors to search for any additional buried weapons and ammunition, and also a robotic device for this raid.

The raids were conducted following the CBI's investigation into allegations of extortion, land seizure, and sexual assault against suspended Trinamool leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his associates.

The raids targeted hideouts associated with the suspects who had attacked the Enforcement Directorate team on January 5.

The assault, which was reportedly carried out by supporters of Shahjahan, who had been on the run for nearly two months before his arrest, resulted in a huge list of complaints against him.

As part of its inquiry, the CBI recently established confidential phone lines and email addresses to urge survivors of Sandeshkhali to step forward and lodge complaints.

Officials stated that the agency received 50 complaints on the first day, many of which were related to alleged land grabbing by politically influential individuals.

What Did TMC Say?

The TMC claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party was trying to 'malign' the state's reputation during the current Lok Sabha elections with this raid.

"We don't know what has been recovered or not. Whatever the CBI is saying, we doubt it. The matter should be probed properly. It can be a sinister ploy by the BJP to malign us during elections. It can be a well-designed campaign by the BJP," TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said.

How Did BJP React?

The BJP was quick to hit back, accusing the TMC of shielding terrorists and having a tacit understanding with anti-national elements.

Senior BJP leader Amit Malviya said the arms haul is nothing but an act of terror.

"The CBI, during the raid, in connection with the attack on ED officials, recovered a huge amount of arms and ammunition from Sariberia, in Sandeshkhali. Mamata Banerjee, as Home Minister of West Bengal, must explain why the state is seeing a huge stockpile of illegal weapons," he posted on X.

"It is dangerous. NSG has been deployed but WB Govt has approached the Supreme Court to preclude the CBI from investigating the matter," he said wondering why Mamata Banerjee is trying to "protect terrorists" who have stocked firearms in such large quantities.

BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said TMC's appeasement politics has led to "anti-national elements" having a free run in the state.

CBI Filed First FIR In Sandeshkhali Case

The CBI on Thursday registered the first case in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali related to the land grab and sexual assault allegations against five influential people there.

The case pertains to a land dispute where women of the victim's family had to allegedly face sexual assault from influential people in the area, they said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has not yet disclosed the identity of the five accused and the victims.

The Calcutta High Court on April 10 had ordered a court-monitored CBI investigation into allegations of crimes against women and land grabbing in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, saying an "impartial inquiry" was required in the interest of justice and fair play.

The CBI had circulated an email ID for people to make complaints in such cases in which a large number of complaints were received.

The agency had dispatched a team to Sandeshkhali to ascertain allegations and proceed with the registration of cases where allegations could be prima facie verified.

After preliminary verification during a field visit in the area, the CBI has registered the first FIR in such allegations of land grab and assault on women handed over to it by the Calcutta High Court.

The High Court had also directed the CBI to file a comprehensive report on the alleged illegal conversion of agricultural land into water bodies for pisciculture after conducting a thorough inspection of revenue records and physical inspection of land alleged to have been converted.

The central agency has been tasked to investigate allegations of crimes against women and land grabbing in Sandeshkhali and submit a comprehensive report to it at the next date of hearing on May 2.

(With PTI inputs)