State prepares to ward off threat from warring criminals

Statesman News Service

MALDA, 25 NOV.: The Malda district administration today held another “peace” meeting at Narayanpur in Kaliachak police station and sought villagers’ cooperation to curb the turf war between the two groups of criminals, over illegal trade along the India-Bangladesh border.

The district magistrate, Mr Sridhar Ghosh, the Malda SP, Mr Bhuban Mandal, other political leaders including, CPI-M district secretary, Mr Jiban Moitra and Congress leaders including, Malda zilla parishad sabhadhipati, Mrs Sabina Yeasmin, other local political leaders and common people were present in today's meeting.

The district authorities held a similar ‘peace’ meeting at Majampur on 22 November, to restore normalcy there. Again, political leaders, religious leaders and common people were all invited to engage in open discussion.

The Malda SP, Mr Bhuban Mandal said: “We shall hold another ‘peace’ meeting tomorrow in the Narayanpur primary health centre field, inviting villagers from two villages Majampur and Narayanpur."

Addressing the meeting, Mr Mandal sought villagers’ cooperation and ensured police help to restore peace in trouble-prone areas.

Mr Mandal today requested the villagers to maintain normalcy so that everyone can celebrate the upcoming Id festival, peacefully.

Police are trying to earn peoples’ support in police action, and faith in police, in order to isolate the criminals and their leaders.

Administration has urged the villagers to provide information about the criminals, who are fighting each other, and in doing so, are disrupting normal life in the two villages as well as the adjoining areas.

Now police are trying to organise villagers, so that they can resist criminal activities in their villages.

Though the police have arrested some criminals, they have not been able to arrest the masterminds, who have been directing their associates in criminal activities, for the last three months.

Since the arrest of a group of criminals from this area, the situation is under control in Majampur and Narayanpur villages.

Apart from the threat to security that has been posed by these warring criminal groups, the concern over terror attack is also high, in and outside Malda. A senior security officer of Eastern Railway said, apart from the Malda divisions, security arrangement has been beefed up in all other major railway installations in the other three divisions. RPF and Government Railway Police have been asked to monitor security arrangements around Sealdah and Howrah station.

When contacted, Mr B Mohan, chief security commissioner of Eastern Railways, said that there was no specific reports of terror attack, but they have made every arrangement to tackle every kind of security threat.

Mr Dilip Mitra, additional director, general of Railways, denied having any Central Intelligence reports on possible terror attacks. A senior officer of state police said that elaborate arrangements have been made to revamp the coastal security. Patrolling along coastal routes, with speed boats has been intensified and local fishermen have been trained to collect information. "The fishermen have been provided with SIM cards and cell phones to keep coast guards informed if they see any suspicious activities," said a senior Intelligence Branch official.