BSF nab smuggler with gold worth 1 crore in Murshidabad

BSF jawans under South Bengal Frontier in Murshidabad district of West Bengal apprehended an Indian smuggler with 14 gold biscuits weighing a total of 1.632 kg and valued at approximately one crore rupees. The smuggler had divided the biscuits into 28 pieces, and the BSF's interception foiled his plans. This incident is significant because of increasing concerns among Kolkata's business community about the rising amount of smuggled gold in the local market.

The merchants of Kolkata had appealed to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to address the issue of smuggled gold in the Kolkata market. The recent actions of the BSF are viewed as a positive step in this direction.

According to the BSF statement, the incident occurred at 0950 hours in Charbhadra Base, 141st Corps, Sector Berhampur, a border post of the BSF. Acting on specific information, the BSF patrolling party noticed suspicious activity and quickly cordoned off the location. The jawans caught a smuggler attempting to flee from a banana plantation and recovered the gold. The apprehended smuggler has been identified as Kabirul Mandal (24) from District Murshidabad.

During interrogation, the smuggler revealed the names of other local smugglers, including Zakir Sekh, Newton Sekh, Rahim Sekh, Salim Sekh, and Ibrahim Mandal, all residents of Dakshin Ghoshpara. The BSF has initiated raids on all these smugglers. The apprehended smuggler and seized goods have been handed over to the Customs Office Jalangi for further legal action.

The commanding officer of the 141st Corps expressed satisfaction with the success of the soldiers and urged people not to engage in smuggling. He warned that his jawans would not tolerate smuggling or other types of crime at the border and would take strict action against those involved.