Kolkata, June 15 (IANS) A huge cache of arms and ammunition has been recovered from a pond in Habra in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district after fishermen accidentally hauled up two bags containing firearms while casting nets, the police said on Monday.

As many as eight firearms and 97 rounds of ammunition were recovered during a search in the pond. An investigation has been launched to determine who concealed the weapons in the water body and their purpose.

According to police officials, the pond belongs to one Subrata Biswas, a farmer from the Purbashapalli area of Kashipur in Habra. Biswas owns two ponds and several bighas of agricultural land. On Monday, fishermen were engaged to harvest fish from one of the ponds when they made the startling discovery.

While casting a net, the fishermen first pulled up a black bag from the pond. On opening it, they found four firearms and 72 rounds of cartridges. The matter was immediately reported to the Habra Police Station, following which officers rushed to the spot and cordoned off the area.

The police launched a thorough search of the pond. During the second round of netting, another black bag was recovered. It contained four more firearms and 25 rounds of cartridges. With the recovery of the second bag, the total number of firearms seized rose to eight, while the total number of cartridges reached 97.

News of the recovery spread quickly through the village, drawing large numbers of local residents to the scene. Additional personnel from Habra Police Station were deployed to maintain law and order, while central forces were also stationed in the area as a precautionary measure.

Barasat Superintendent of Police J. Mercy said, “The police reached the spot after receiving information from the villagers about the weapons. After searching, a total of eight country-made pistols were recovered in two bags. Along with them, 97 rounds of cartridges were also recovered. An investigation is underway to find out who kept the firearms there.”

Speaking to local media, Taramani Biswas, wife of pond owner Subrata Biswas, said, “We grow fish in the pond. Today, we sent fishermen to the pond to catch fish. Later, we received news that bags full of firearms were recovered from the pond. Many bullets were found. The pond is next to an isolated road. We cannot say who dumped the weapons in the pond.”

The recovery comes days after a similar seizure in Sandeshkhali on June 6, when the Special Task Force (STF) of West Bengal Police recovered a large cache of firearms and cartridges from a pond in the Manipur area of the district. The pond was reportedly linked to Trinamool Congress leader and former regional president Robin Das. Following the recovery, Das and his brother Gopal Das allegedly fled the area.

–IANS

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