Jaish-e-Mohammed suspect Hamid Mondol was apprehended in West Bengal's Burdwan district by the Special Task Force (STF) of Kolkata Police and local police. The 23-year-old is suspected of recruiting individuals and monitoring the movements of West Bengal's Chief Minister and other political figures, allegedly maintaining contact with individuals connected to the 2019 Pulwama terror attack through social media. The operation, conducted by a six-member STF team, resulted in his custody, with further questioning expected in Kolkata after his appearance in Burdwan court.

Jaish-e-Mohammed suspect Hamid Mondol was apprehended in West Bengal's Burdwan district by the Special Task Force (STF) of Kolkata Police and local police. The 23-year-old is suspected of recruiting individuals and monitoring the movements of West Bengal's Chief Minister and other political figures, allegedly maintaining contact with individuals connected to the 2019 Pulwama terror attack through social media. The operation, conducted by a six-member STF team, resulted in his custody, with further questioning expected in Kolkata after his appearance in Burdwan court.

Jaish-e-Mohammed suspect Hamid Mondol was apprehended in West Bengal's Burdwan district by the Special Task Force (STF) of Kolkata Police and local police. The 23-year-old is suspected of recruiting individuals and monitoring the movements of West Bengal's Chief Minister and other political figures, allegedly maintaining contact with individuals connected to the 2019 Pulwama terror attack through social media. The operation, conducted by a six-member STF team, resulted in his custody, with further questioning expected in Kolkata after his appearance in Burdwan court.

Suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist Hamid Mondol was arrested on Friday from the Burdwan district of West Bengal by the Special Task Force (STF) of the Kolkata Police and the Burdwan police. Mondol was arrested from Renasha Township in Burdwan district.

The accused, who is around 23 years old, is the son of Moniuddin and lived with his wife and three children. The family had rented a flat on the second floor of a building named Rohini in this township. Neighbours were not aware of his background. He reportedly told some people that he was an employee in the private sector.

Hamid Mondol is said to be close to Sajad Bhat, under whose name the vehicle was registered that was used in the Pulwama terror attack in 2019, and was reportedly in touch with others through WhatsApp groups and social media platforms like Instagram.

Preliminary investigations reveal that the modus operandi was to recruit more people and track the movements of the Chief Minister and other political leaders in the West Bengal government.

According to sources, a six-member STF team carried out the operation and took him into custody. The accused is expected to be produced before the Burdwan court later in the day, and a prayer will be made for police custody, after which the accused is expected to be brought to Kolkata for further questioning by senior officers. Police suspect he was living in other locations in the state, including in Kolkata. Further details regarding the investigation and the charges against him are awaited.

CM Adhikari responds

CM Suvendu Adhikari declined to divulge further details at a preliminary stage, stating it was a sensitive matter. “I am not passing any comment; it is a very sensitive issue. It is about international connections and about national safety,” said Suvendu Adhikari.

The CM said it is a question of national security and not any particular individual. “The honourable Home Minister had come to Nabanna (the state secretariat) in 2022. There was a meeting with four CMs of the region (eastern),” said Adhikari.

“The country’s interest first, politics later. I had gone to ask for land from the Chief Minister (Mamata Banerjee) for border fencing. I had bowed down as it is about the nation first. If the nation is secure, everything will be there, including politics,” Adhikari said while narrating his conversation with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

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