A former land official in Birbhum was arrested in Kolkata’s Behala on Sunday in connection with an alleged corruption case involving the stone and sand trade, as police investigate a suspected multi-crore revenue evasion network in the district’s stone belt.
Rabiul Islam, who served as district land and land reforms officer of the Suri Sadar sub-division, was arrested by Birbhum police. According to the report, police allege that Islam facilitated the trade from within the land department. He continued as deputy district land and land reforms officer after retirement.
A Suri magistrate remanded Islam in police custody for eight days. During his court appearance, Islam reportedly told the court that he had no personal authority and had acted on the instructions of senior officials. The allegation against him has not been established in court.
The investigation centres on alleged irregularities in the collection of revenue and the movement of stone and sand in Birbhum’s mining belt. Police have described the case as involving multiple crores in suspected revenue evasion. The alleged scale of the case places the land administration system, permit processes and oversight of mineral transport at the centre of the investigation.
Police raids on July 29 at the Deucha residence of Tulu Mondal’s relative, Minar Mondal, resulted in the seizure of Rs 28 crore in cash and 15 kg of gold, according to the report. Subsequent searches allegedly uncovered printing machinery, fake challans, pen drives, computers and 13 lakh cubic feet of illegal sand.
Investigators also reported finding Rs 220 crore in bank accounts and fixed deposits, properties spread across 400 bighas and more than 250 vehicles. The assets and material seized are being examined as part of the inquiry into the alleged network. The report did not establish whether all the seized assets were directly linked to illegal stone and sand operations.
Several alleged accomplices have already been arrested, including the former land reforms officer of Mohammad Bazaar, two land department clerks and police constable Saigal Hossain, who was previously a bodyguard of Anubrata Mondal. Police also searched the Suri residence of Prabhat and Joli Mondal.
Investigators told the newspaper that the couple allegedly acted as Islam’s agents and that he had allegedly purchased benami properties in their names. These claims remain part of the police investigation. Islam had been issued a notice for questioning, but police said he evaded the summons before his arrest.
The case has expanded beyond individual arrests to questions about how permits, challans, mineral transport and revenue collection were administered across the stone-producing areas. On October 13, police filed a chargesheet before the Suri district court naming 12 people, including absconding accused Tulu Mondal and 11 arrested accused. The latest arrest adds a former senior land official to the group of accused being investigated.
