NIA files supplementary charge sheet against two in Bengal explosive seizure case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a second supplementary charge sheet against two accused in a case related to the seizure of a huge cache of electric detonators and explosives from West Bengal in 2022, an official said on Saturday.

With this, the total number of accused charge-sheeted in the case has gone up to nine. Five accused persons were named in the main charge sheet and two accused persons were named in the first supplementary charge sheet in April and June this year, respectively.

The latest supplementary charge sheet was filed on Wednesday against Manoj Ghosh and Islam Chowdhury of West Bengal. They have been charged under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, Explosive Substances Act and the Arms Act, a spokesperson of the federal agency said.

The case was registered in September 2022 following the seizure of 81,000 electric detonators from a vehicle in the Md Bazar Police Station area in Birbhum by a team of Special Task Force (STF), West Bengal.

The vehicle's driver, Ashish Keora, was also arrested, and subsequent searches had led to the seizure of another 2,525 electric detonators, 27,000 kg of ammonium nitrate and 1,625 kg of gelatin sticks from an illegal godown.

Also, the seized documents showed that a total number of 86,700 kg of gelatin sticks, 4,99,222 electric detonators and 204 nonels (big electronic detonators) were illegally supplied to various illegal miners so far, the spokesperson said.

The official said the investigations revealed that Ghosh, the owner of Rajlaxmi Stone Works, located at Kalipur, Bahadurpur, procured explosives like electric detonators, ammonium nitrate and gelatine sticks illegally from accused Rintu Sk for his illegal stone mining and stored them in the vicinity of a public place, thereby endangering the lives and properties of the civil population.

He was also found in possession of prohibited firearms and ammunition, the spokesperson said.

The official said investigations also revealed that Chowdhury had knowledge of the illegal business of explosives and he had established close contact and conspired with accused Merajuddin Ali Khan, Mir Md Nuruzzaman and facilitated them in carrying out the illegal supply of explosives.