The prime accused in Tuesday’s massive explosion in an illegal cracker factory at Egra in East Midnapore district, in which nine people were killed and several injured, some of them critically, Krishnapada Bag alias Bhanu Bag, was arrested by the sleuths of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of West Bengal Police from Cuttack in neighbouring Odisha on Thursday.
His son and nephew Prithvijit Bag and Indrajit Bag were also arrested along with him.
Since Bhanu was undergoing treatment in a private nursing home in Cuttack following injury in the gruesome explosion and not in a position to be shifted to West Bengal right now, he could not be produced in court.
Soon after the incident, Bhanu along with others fled to Odisha as the affected Khadikul village under the Sahara Panchayat Area at Egra in East Midnapore district is barely two km from the neighbouring state border.
CID launched a massive hunt for Bhanu, who was absconding since the explosion and kept his mobile switched off.
On Tuesday itself, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee ordered for a CID probe into the explosion.
It might be mentioned that Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, who visited the village on Wednesday, strongly vouched for a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to uncover the truth behind the incident and filed a public interest litigation at a Division Bench of Calcutta High Court, demanding National Investigation Agency (NIA) investigation into the incident, while State BJP President Sukanta Majumdar dashed off a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah with a demand for NIA probe.
Adhikari said, ” The intensity of the blast was so severe that mangled body parts were flung more than 100 metres from the spot. Don’t try to paint the event as a ‘fire cracker factory accident’; even a kid knows that crude bombs were being manufactured ahead of the Panchayat Elections. “
Majumdar asked, ” GoWB while responding to a notice issued by the Hon’ble Supreme Court cited intelligence inputs behind the ban on #TheKerelaStory. Is it sensible to believe that Failure CM @mamataofficial’s inept police force has no inputs regarding bomb-making factories brewing in the state? “
Stating that the explosion at Khadikul Village in Egra raised pertinent questions, he further asked, ” Bhanu Bag, the key accused and owner of the so called fire crackers factory, was arrested in Oct’22 and later released. Did the police turn a blind eye to his flourishing empire? If so, why? “
