Kaliganj death: 4 more FIR-named accused nabbed, total tally 9
The Statesman | 29 June 2025
In a significant breakthrough, five days after the horrific socket bomb explosion in Kaliganj’s Molandi village that killed 9-year-old Tamanna Khatun during by-election celebrations, police on Friday night arrested four more individuals, who were among the 24 accused named in the FIR. With this, the total number of arrests in the case has reached nine.
The arrested men, Nawab Sheikh, Habibul Sheikh, Gawal Sheikh, and Bimal Sheikh, were apprehended from Katwa in East Burdwan during a late-night raid. Among them, Gawal and Bimal are father and son. Police sources confirmed that all four were produced in the Krishnagar district court on Saturday, where investigators sought a seven-day police custody for interrogation and further investigation.
Advertisement
The arrests have brought some momentum to a case that has shaken the conscience of the state, with public anger mounting over the delay in catching all those named in the FIR. “It’s been five days since my daughter was killed. I came to the judge asking for justice,” said Sabina Bibi, the mother of the deceased girl, who was present in court on Friday to submit a confidential statement.
On 23 June, as the results of the Kaliganj bypoll were being announced, a victory procession in Molandi village turned deadly when a socket bomb—allegedly hurled by local miscreants—exploded, killing Tamanna Khatun on the spot. Her mutilated body, witnesses said, painted a horrifying picture of violence fuelled by political frenzy.
Two of the earlier arrested accused—Anwar Sheikh and Adar Sheikh—had bombs recovered from their residences, confirming suspicions that explosives had been stockpiled in the area prior to the poll result. Following fresh allegations of police inaction and local complaints of widespread bomb hoarding, a bomb squad was finally deployed to Molandi on Friday to comb the area.
Local sources say that despite the arrests, tension continues to simmer in the village. Police vehicles have been stationed at strategic points, but fear persists. According to the victim’s family, they continue to receive threats, and villagers remain tight-lipped, afraid of potential retaliation.
While police maintain that raids are ongoing to apprehend the remaining 15 FIR-named accused, opposition leaders and rights activists have accused the administration of deliberate delay and negligence. “How could such a large cache of bombs be ignored by the local police until a child died?” asked a senior local activist, demanding accountability beyond arrests.