STF arrested suspected terrorist Mandal from Burdwan district.
The West Bengal Special Task Force (STF) has claimed that alleged Jaish-e-Mohammed operative Hamim Mandal, who was arrested in Burdwan district, had planned to carry out sabotage at the protest held at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
According to the STF, Mandal intended to enter the ‘Cockroach Janata Party’ protest disguised in a police uniform.
STF Inspector General Gaurav Sharma said the investigation also found that several people, including West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu and senior police officers, were on Mandal’s alleged target list.
Officials claimed that Mandal was in contact with Pakistani handlers and was gathering information on the activities of political leaders on their instructions.
The STF also claimed to have found evidence of contacts with Pakistan through WhatsApp, Telegram and Instagram from Mandal’s mobile phone and social media chats.
On Friday night, the STF arrested Arpita Sarkar, who is alleged to be Mandal’s associate and girlfriend.
Police brought Arpita from Jharkhand to Kolkata. The Burdwan court has sent her to 13 days of custody.
Arpita allegedly planned honey-trap of state minister’s son
The STF claimed that Mandal and Arpita Sarkar had conspired to honey-trap the son of a West Bengal state minister.
According to investigators, the two allegedly planned to kidnap the minister’s son and extort money from the family.
A senior STF officer said the investigation suggests Pakistani handlers directed the alleged conspiracy. Officials are now investigating the role of each accused and whether more people were involved.
Bengal STF’s claims
According to the STF, Arpita and Mandal planned to build personal relationships with influential people to obtain sensitive information on the instructions of Pakistani handlers.
Investigators said the two had been in contact for the past four years. They first connected on Instagram before later meeting in person.
The STF claimed that Mandal used encrypted messaging platforms and foreign SIM cards to communicate with Pakistani handlers, identified by the codenames Rana, Abeer, Habib and 333.
Officials also claimed to have recovered international SIM cards issued in the United Kingdom and Mexico from him.
Allegedly monitored Bengal CM’s activities
According to the STF, the 23-year-old Mandal previously worked in Howrah before moving to Bardhaman ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections, where he rented an apartment.
Officials claimed he had been in hiding for the past two to three months to avoid detection by investigating agencies.
The STF alleged that Mandal joined the terror module through social media about a year ago. Investigators claim the module was operated by gangster Shahzad Bhatti and his associate Ajmal Gujjar.
According to the STF, Pakistani handlers instructed Mandal to monitor the Chief Minister’s movements and collect information about locations where the Chief Minister could stay without security.
Terror module investigation began after minister’s complaint
The STF held a press conference on Saturday and said the investigation began after receiving information about an alleged conspiracy to extort money from a state minister and kidnap his son through a honey-trap.
According to officials, the investigation pointed to the involvement of an organised network.
The inquiry led investigators to a social media account operated by Arpita Sarkar from Sahibganj. Further investigation of that account eventually led the STF to Hamim Mandal.
