New Delhi, Aug 14 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday arrested Proclaimed Offender (PO) Masad Seikh in connection with the Trinamool Congress gram panchayat leader Bhadu Sheikh's murder from Wari Bander in Mumbai's Dongri, an official said.
The accused was absconding since registration of an FIR in 2022, and he never joined the investigation/trial.
He was arrested by the CBI on the basis of human intelligence and technical inputs, an official statement said.
The CBI registered the case immediately on April 8, 2022, in compliance with the order of the Calcutta High Court by taking over the FIR at the Rampurhat Police Station dated March 22, 2022.
Trinamool Congress gram panchayat leader Bhadu Sheikh was murdered on March 21, 2022, at Bogtui in West Bengal's Birbhum district.
After completion of investigation, the CBI filed a chargesheet and supplementary chargesheets in 2022 and 2023 against nine accused, including Masad Seikh in the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Court at Birbhum's Rampurhat.
The trial was transferred to Additional District and Sessions Judge court in Purba Bardhaman of West Bengal.
The accused would be brought to Kolkata from Mumbai for production before the competent court, the CBI said.
In a separate development, a singleâ€'judge bench of the Calcutta High Court on Thursday refused to hear a petition filed by absconding stone quarry owner from Birbhum district in West Bengal, Tulu Mondal alias Mohammad Nazibuddin, challenging a "Hulia" (a courtâ€'issued notice or warrant containing a description of a fugitive suspect) issued against him by a district court in Birbhum.
Mondal is under the scanner of both the Birbhum District Police and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after cash worth Rs 28 crore and 15 kg of gold with an estimated market value of around Rs 22 crore were recovered earlier this month from the residence of his close relative, Minar Mondal.
During questioning, Minar admitted that the cash and gold recovered from his residence belonged to Tulu and that he was only entrusted with the task of keeping them in his possession.
Since Tulu has been absconding since then, the cops brought out a "Hulia" from a district court in Birbhum last week and subsequently issued a Red Corner Notice against him.
