West Bengal: TMC leaders Saddam Mandal and Sajjan Alam arrested for assisting one Jasimuddin in kidnapping a businessman and demanding ₹1 crore ransom

West Bengal Police have arrested three people including two Trinamool Congress leaders for kidnapping a Delhi-based businessman for ransom. The police of Shasan police station under Barasat police district arrested TMC leaders Saddam Mandal and Sajjan Alam, along with their accomplish Jamaluddin Sheikh, for kidnapping fish trader Nazim Chauhan.

Samad Mandal is the vice-president of Trinamool Congress of Charghat Panchayat in Swarupnagar, and Sajjan Alam is also a Trinamool leader from Swarupnagar and his wife Farida Khatun is a panchayat member from the ruling party. They were arrested on Monday, and the kidnapped person has been rescued. However, the main accused in the case is still absconding.

Police said that Nazim used to visit Basirhat area for trading in Magur fish. Nazim Chauhan and Jasimuddin Mandal alias Raju, the mastermind of the kidnapping, had jointly set up a hatchery for breeding hybrid Magur fish. However, that business closed a year ago, and there was a conflict between the two over the due amount for transactions already done.

Recently, the hatchery was sold to a third party, and they decided to resolve the disputes and settle the account. Therefore, Jasimuddin called Nazim Chauhan to come to Basirhat to collect the due amount.

But, when he arrived on Sunday morning, he was abducted from Kachkal area while he was going to Basirhat from Kolkata airport in a taxi. As per police, Jasimuddin went to the airport in a taxi to pick up Nazim after he arrived from Delhi. When the cab reached Kachkal area, Jasimuddin asked the cab driver Mirajul Ghazi to stop.

Soon another car arrived at the spot, and some people from that car dragged Nazim from the taxi and forced him to sit in the car. They also dragged Jasimuddin to make it look like that both of them were being abducted.

They then reached a secluded area in Basirhat, and called the fish trader’s family demanding a ransom of ₹1 crore.

In the meanwhile, cab driver Mirajul Ghazi reached Shasan police station to inform that two people from his cab were abducted by some people. Accordingly, police registered a complaint and started the probe.

After sometime, Jasimuddin called the driver, informing that he was part of the plan to kidnap the Delhi-based businessman. He said that Nazim will be released as soon as they receive the payment. Police then traced the location of the number and reached the place where Nazim Chauhan was held.

After realising that their plan has been busted, kidnappers abandoned Chauhan on the roadside and fled from the spot. Chauhan took shelter at the house of a person known to him, from where he was rescued by the police.

Saddam Mandal, Sajjan Alam and Jamaluddin Sheikh were later nabbed by police. However, Jasimuddin Mandal remains absconding. The arrested persons were produced before the Barasat court on Tuesday, and they were remanded to police custody till June 20.

Investigation revealed that Jasimuddin owes around ₹3 crore in the market. So, he hatched a plan to kidnap Nazim and demand ₹1 crore in ransom. He took the help of TMC leaders Saddam and Sajjam in the plan.

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