3 more held for attack on policemen in Bengal's Sandeshkhali

Kolkata, Jan 5 (PTI) Three more persons were arrested in connection with the attack on police personnel in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali last week, taking the total number of apprehended people in the case to 12, a senior officer said on Monday.

Murtaza Mollah, a brother of Trinamool Congress worker Musa Mollah, who has been named as the prime accused in the case, was among the three, he said.

Murtaza's two sons, Montazul Mollah and Monowar Hossain Mollah, were also held, the officer said, adding that the arrests were made from the Jibantala area in South 24 Parganas district late on Sunday night.

Nine people, including a woman, were arrested earlier in connection with the case, he said.

"The main accused, Musa Mollah, is still absconding and efforts are underway to trace him," the police officer told PTI.

Six policemen were injured, and a police vehicle was vandalised in the mob attack during an attempt to arrest the TMC worker in Sandeshkhali, once again pushing the coastal block of the South 24 Parganas district into political focus ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

The incident occurred on the night of January 2 when a team from the Nazat Police Station went to Boyermari village in Sandeshkhali to arrest Musa Mollah in connection with the alleged illegal occupation of land and water bodies for pisciculture, the police said. PTI SCH BDC