By Zaidul Haque, TwoCircles.net
Kolkata: One man killed and another was seriously injured as a result of a heavy explosion at an apartment owned by a BJP leader in the Dumdum airport area of Kolkata on the Independence Day. Police have arrested the apartment owner Manik Das Baidya along with his two sons. Baidya has twice contested the municipal election on BJP ticket.
The intensity of the blast collapsed the wall and damaged parts of a room.
The explosion took place not far from the Kolkata Airport, from where Hajj tour of West Bengal pilgrims started on August 16th.
Caption: Police investigating after bomb blast at BJP leaders house in Kolkata on 15 August’s midnight.
Before the Independence day Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee had said state intelligence agency has indicated that some groups are trying to disturb the peaceful situation in the state.
Surprisingly no leading media highlighted this explosion in West Bengal, Even National Investigating Agency (NIA) has not responded about this blast.
Beside this blast, on Friday Kolkata police recovered 22 bag raw materials of explosives from a Godown at Barabazar area including 500 kg Sulphur, 600 kg Ammonium Nitrate etc., according to a CID officer of Kolkata Police.
What happened in Dumdum?
According to police source of Barackpur Police Commissionarate, in a two-storied building at Dumdum Motilal Colony near Gate No. 2 of Kolkata Airport on the first floor some people were secretly making bombs. After the heavy explosion local people informed the police and police came within a short time. They found two people seriously injured Balai Dey (28) and Sudip Dev, both are suspected to be the bomb-makers. They were first taken to Dumdum Municipal Hospital, later rushed to the R G Kar Hospital by the police.
Balai Dey was declared dead at the hospital. Sudip Dev is getting medical treatment in the hospital.
On Saturday Barrackpur Police Commissioner Niraj Kumar Singh said that they have recovered six unused bomb, few numbers of mobile phones etc from the place of the explosion.
Residents of Dumdum Motilal colony locally known as Aambagan said that at the midnight of Independence Day they woke up to a heavy sound of the explosion.
Local residents also said, about 15-16 families stayed in the two-storied building owned by Manik Das Baidya. Baidya is a local BJP leader and has contested election twice as BJP candidate.
On Sunday many people gathered around the BJP leaders house where explosion occurred. Local people said, that unknown persons used to come to that house. Neighbors didn’t know the person killed or the injured in the blast.
But Police Commissioner Niraj Kumar Singh told the reporter on Sunday that, Balai Dey and injured Sudip dev are well known miscreants in the Habra-Ashoknagar area. They were earlier involved in money extortion from businessmen and supplied bombs to the anti social elements.
A case was filed earlier in Ghola Police station of North 24 Parganas against Balai and police was looking for him.
Niraj kumar Singh informed that police has arrested Sudip Dev and now actively interrogating him. Sudip said, they were making bombs to supply Ashoknagar-Habra area.
North Kolkata suburban district president of BJP Gopal Sarkar admitted that Manik Das Baidya was a member of the BJP, he even contested and lost two municipal elections as BJP candidate. However, Sarkar said that for last few years Baidya had no connection with the BJP.
Local Trinamool Congress leader and Vice-Chairman of Dumdum Municipality Barun Natta said, BJP are using the miscreants to disturb the peaceful area. He also said, local people inform him that, along with the victims another two-three persons were with them who fled after the blast. Everyone said, landlord is the active BJP worker. So, BJP could not avoid the responsibility about the matter, he argued.
State secretary of Jamiat-E Ulama –E Hind Maulana Siddiqullah Chowdhury told TwooCircles.net that, “NIA should immediately take up the investigation as it may be part of a bigger conspiracy to make communal disturbance in the state.” Chowdhury thanked state police for their quick action.
Siddiqullah also said, “when Khagragarh blast happened, then in the name of blast media maligned image of Madrassas. But enough attention is not being given to this blast to investigate the involvement and conspiracy behind this incident”. He was referring the blast in 2014 in Burdwan district where two people were killed.
Grand Imam of Nakhoda Mosque, Kolkata Maulana Muhammad Shafique demanded immediate arrest of state BJP chief Rahul Sinha who is now totally silent on the Dumdum blast case. But he was found to be very vocal against the Muslim community after Khagragarh to insinuate that Muslims are engaged in anti-national activities. “It is the suitable time to ask the state BJP leader that, why there is a bomb-making factory in a BJP leader’s house?”
All India minority Youth federation leader Muhammad Kamruzzaman also demanded NIA investigation of the bomb blast. He said, “This blast is similar in nature to Khagragarh. So, why no NIA investigation in this blast?”
He also said, they have full faith in NIA’s investigation.