Police seized two more firearms in West Bengal's Bhatpara, part of a larger crackdown recovering 35 arms in 3 months. Separately, 14 Bangladeshi nationals were arrested from a train with fake Aadhaar cards while allegedly travelling to Kashmir.
Crackdown on Illegal Arms in Barrackpore
Police on Thursday, recovered two more firearms along with three cartridges from the Bhatpara area, officials said. Two miscreants have been arrested in connection with the recovery.
According to police, the latest seizure is part of an ongoing crackdown on illegal arms in the Barrackpore industrial region. In the past three months alone, authorities have recovered a total of 35 firearms and 51 cartridges, while arresting 27 individuals linked to such activities.
Police sources indicated that since 2019, areas under Bhatpara, Jagaddal, and Titagarh police stations have emerged as key zones where illegal weapons are prevalent. These areas fall within the Barrackpore industrial belt, where concerns over the spread of illicit arms have persisted over the years.
Despite directives from the state government to curb the circulation of illegal weapons, such activities continue to be reported from these regions.
Police said efforts are ongoing to dismantle networks involved in the supply and possession of illegal firearms. Further investigation is underway.
14 Bangladeshi Nationals Apprehended
In another case, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) at Jalpaiguri Road station, apprehended 14 Bangladeshi nationals, including four women and four minors, from the Delhi-bound Northeast Express train, officials said.
The individuals were found carrying Aadhaar cards, and a detailed investigation has been launched to verify whether the documents are forged or obtained through illegal means.
Speaking to ANI, RPF Inspector Biplab Dutta said the investigation was carried out based on specific inputs and during routine train checks. He explained that suspicious individuals were identified during inspection, which led to further verification of their documents. "Based on source information, our RPF staff identified several suspected individuals while inspecting trains... Upon verifying their Aadhaar cards, the documents appeared to be fake..." Dutta said. "Acting on this, we took action regarding 5 men, 5 women, and 4 children. They are all residents of Bangladesh... We recovered fake Aadhaar cards and Malaysian currency... They stated they were travelling to Kashmir for work..." he added. (ANI)
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