Birbhum district police in West Bengal announced the discovery of a significant amount of unaccounted cash and gold during a search at the home of a missing Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader linked to illegal sand mining. The police recovered Rs 49.75 lakh in cash and 503 grams of gold ornaments from the residence of the accused, Laban Sheikh. Additionally, Laban’s business partner, Shamim Sheikh, has been apprehended by the authorities.
Laban Sheikh and another business partner, Sohail Sheikh, are currently on the run, with police actively pursuing them. The district police have heightened vigilance by alerting all police stations in the area. Apart from their involvement in illegal sand mining, the accused trio was also reportedly engaged in road construction contracting.
The individuals in question were closely associated with Anubrata Mondal, the former Trinamool Congress district president, who wielded significant influence in Birbhum district. In a separate incident, Gopal Das, a Trinamool Congress councilor from Basirhat Municipality, was arrested by Basirhat Police District for allegedly extorting money from locals under the guise of facilitating housing arrangements through the state’s “Banglar Bari” scheme.
Residents claimed that despite making payments to Das, many did not receive the promised housing benefits. This led to a protest outside Das’s residence by aggrieved individuals. In a different turn of events, Barun Sarkar, a Trinamool Congress councilor from Rajpur-Sonarpur Municipality, was caught stealing fish from a local fishery by Baruipur Police District in South 24 Parganas district.
Sarkar was apprehended by locals and subsequently handed over to the police for further action.
