Police in Malda arrested a youth on Saturday, who allegedly rode a bike with three gunmen seated on the pillion to murder TMC leader Dulal Sarkar on January 2 and then speed off with the trio from the scene of the crime.
On January 2, Sarkar, a councillor in the Englishbazar civic body, was gunned down by assailants in a shop near his plywood factory in the Jhaljhalia area of Malda town.
The police initiated a probe and arrested eight persons so far, including Narendranath Tiwari, the Trinamool president of Englishbazar town block committee.
Tiwari and his associate, Swapan Sharma, allegedly hired gunmen to kill Sarkar. After his arrest, TMC suspended Tiwari from the party.
Police sources said that Md Asrar, who is 22 years old, absconded after the murder. He was arrested from a hideout in Bihar.
“He is from Kanharia Minapur village under Baisi police station in Purnea district of Bihar. He was one of the four members of the team that chased Sarkar and shot him dead,” said a senior police officer.
During the investigation, the police found that Asrar was driving the motorcycle, with three others seated on the pillion.
As they neared Sarkar’s factory and spotted him, the trio fired at him. Then, Asrar whisked the trio away from the spot on the bike.
Later, he abandoned the two-wheeler at a deserted place in Malda and fled the town.
“We were in search of him. Finally, nabbed him. He will be interrogated to gather more information about the incident,” the officer added.
The police, sources said, have formed multiple teams who are in search of two others, Krishna Rajaka aka Rohan, and Bablu Yadav, who are still at large. Police have not divulged much detail about their role in Sarkar's murder, except that Krishna had sheltered the gunmen in his grandmother's house in Mahanandpally.
Both Krishna and Bablu are also from Mahanandpally, the locality in Malda town where the slain TMC leader has his house.
The police have also announced a cash reward of ₹2 lakh each for Krishna and Bablu.
“We hope they will be in custody soon. Their statements are important for this case,” said the police officer.
