Kolkata: The CBI on Friday seized a huge amount of firearms and explosives in a raid conducted in West Bengal’s Sandeshkhali in connection with an attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers.
According to officials, arms and ammunition, including foreign-made pistols were seized by the central agency during a search operation in the area. The CBI is investigating the case of the attack on ED officials in Sandeshkhali and has registered three FIRs related to incidents on 5 January.
As per sources, CBI got a tip-off about the stock of arms and crude bombs at the residence of Sheikh Shahjahan’s relative Hafizul Khan, who is also an elected panchayat member of the ruling party. Acting promptly on the information, a team of CBI along with the Central Armed Police Forces conducted the raid at the residence that was located within a pisciculture farm and seized the ammunition.
The alleged mastermind Shahjahan is under CBI’s custody after he was arrested by the West Bengal Police on February 29. Besides being involved in the assault on an ED team during a raid on his Sandeshkhali residence, he is linked to an alleged multi-crore ration scam. Shahjahan also faces charges of land encroachment, extortion and harassment of women alongside his accomplices.
Sandeshkhali comes under Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency, where the polls are scheduled to be held in the seventh and last phase on 1st June. It is suspected that the firearms, explosives and crude bombs were stocked there for use on polling day in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
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