TMC man named in FIR, no cop action yet

Kolkata: Even 24 hours after a Rajarhat-based businessman lodged a complaint against Trinamool councillor Shahnawaz Ali Mondal alias Dampi and his three aides for alleged extortion, the beleaguered councillor is yet to be questioned by police. The cops, however, raided the homes of the councillor's aides, who are absconding. The police FIR against Dampi and his aides mentions the same penal sections that landed another councillor Anindya Chatterjee in prison 11 days back.

In a complaint, Rajarhat-based businessman Anup Sharma alleged that Dampi's associates - Raju Pal, Subhajit Ghosh alias Dustu, Ratan Mallik and Imtiaz Ali Mondal alias Buro - came to his house and demanded money. Sharma, in his complaint, also named the councillor. The complaint was treated as an FIR on Friday evening. It said Sharma was threatened by Dampi's boys who demanded Rs 10 lakh from him and "behaved like a mafia". He also alleged that when he wanted to negotiate the amount, he was slapped in front of Mondal.

"We have received the complaint and are looking into it. We have already lodged a crackdown against the syndicate runners and some of the accused in the complaint are already under lens," said a senior official with the Bidhannagar Police.

Dampi said: "I will not talk to media now. Let the law take its own course."

But an associate of Dampi claimed that he was being victimised. "A local Trinamool leader, who was earlier close to CPM, is trying to gain ground in the area. He is trying to victimize him," the aide said. Meanwhile, local Trinamool leaders are sending a detailed report about the developments in Rajarhat-New Town to the party's North 24-Parganas president Jyotipriyo Mullick.

Sharma has been living under a threat for the last eight months. "So far there is no fresh intimidation. But the person against whom I have lodged the complaint is powerful," Sharma said. Questions are also being raised about Sharma's legal ownership over the property. According to a source, a case was registered with the police in 2011 where a woman claimed that she had been duped by Sharma who usurped the property. Sharma said, "There is no question about the legality of the property." Police handed over the key to me. They would not have done so if there were a dispute," he said. According to sources, Dampi's men tried to encash on the dispute regarding the land and extort Sharma when he wanted to enter home.

Background

Shahnawaz Ali Mondal alias Dampi started his political career as TMCP leader. Later he started walking up the ladder since 2011 when there was a change in power in the state. He was shot into prominence after he became main opposition against the then chairman of Rajarhat Gopalpur municipality Tapas Chatterjee. He entered the raw material order supply business after that and started spreading his net. Gradually he became the kingpin in the syndicates there. In 2015, Dampi contested Bidhannagar Municipality election on TMC tickets.