In a major development in West Bengal politics, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Pareshram Das was arrested from the Kolkata Airport on Monday after being on the run for 17 days. The MLA, who was preparing to board a flight to Mumbai, was intercepted and apprehended by a special team of the Baruipur police. According to police authorities, his arrest has been executed in connection with multiple serious cases involving rape, extortion, assault, cheating, criminal conspiracy, criminal intimidation, and incidents related to post-poll violence in the state. This dramatic arrest has created ripples across the political landscape of West Bengal, drawing sharp reactions from political figures and parties alike.
Baruipur Police Special Team Executes The Action
The high-profile arrest was executed on Monday afternoon by a special operation group of the Baruipur police from the South 24 Parganas district. Pareshram Das, who represents the Canning Paschim assembly constituency as an MLA, had been evading the long arms of the law for a considerable period. On Monday, he reached the Kolkata Airport intending to catch a flight to Mumbai, unaware that the law enforcement agencies were closely tracking his movements. Acting on a tip-off, the police team cornered him right at the airport premises and successfully took him into custody.
A senior police official informed the Press Trust of India (PTI) that the legislator had been absconding for a long time and the police team successfully cornered him at the airport. Immediately following his arrest, the MLA was escorted back to Baruipur in the South 24 Parganas district. Police officials stated that he will be produced before a local court on Tuesday, where investigators are likely to seek his custody for further questioning to unearth more details regarding the various criminal allegations leveled against him.
Reports indicate that the MLA from the Canning Paschim assembly seat had been evading arrest for approximately 17 days. The Special Operation Group of the Baruipur police in the South 24 Parganas district managed to nab him precisely when he arrived at the airport with the sole objective of escaping to Mumbai via air travel.
Charged With Rape And Multiple Severe Offenses
According to the details shared by law enforcement authorities, MLA Pareshram Das has been formally booked under several grave charges, which include rape, assault, cheating, criminal conspiracy, extortion, and criminal intimidation, while a specific case was registered against him at the Canning police station on September 5 under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), specifically Section 376, Section 323, Section 420, Section 120B, and Section 506. These pending legal matters also incorporate serious allegations linked to post-poll violence that erupted across parts of West Bengal.
Investigating officers noted that ever since these severe allegations surfaced, the legal net surrounding the legislator had been tightening steadily. Law enforcement agencies were actively gathering corroborative evidence to substantiate the claims made in the complaints. Faced with mounting legal pressure and the imminent threat of arrest, the MLA had been constantly shifting his hiding locations before finally getting cornered at the airport.
CID Summons And Subsequent Disappearance
Shedding light on the sequence of events leading up to the arrest, police officials explained that the Crime Investigation Department (CID), which is actively probing the sensitive rape case, had officially summoned the MLA twice for questioning. Complying with the summons, the legislator did appear before the investigators on one occasion, but the explanations and answers provided by him during the interrogation were reportedly deemed unsatisfactory by the sleuths. Investigators believed that he was evasive and failed to provide clear clarifications regarding the serious accusations.
Following that initial round of questioning, the MLA suddenly went completely off the grid and vanished during the last week of October. Alarmed by his abrupt disappearance, police teams conducted an intensive raid at his residence located in Canning in a bid to locate and detain him. During that specific operation, police successfully arrested four Trinamool Congress leaders who were allegedly associated with the local network. However, despite the massive search operation at that time, Pareshram Das managed to slip away and evade the police raid.
Attempted Escape To Mumbai Thwarted
Investigators and police officials strongly suspected that the MLA had formulated a calculated plan to flee the state and seek refuge in another part of the country precisely to dodge ongoing police interrogation and imminent detention. As part of this strategy, he finalized arrangements to travel to Mumbai. According to police inputs, he reached the Kolkata Airport on Monday to board a Mumbai-bound flight so that he could relocate to a safe haven. However, the vigilance of the Baruipur police special operation group successfully thwarted his escape plan, apprehending him right before he could board the flight.
Tunal Ghosh Raises Questions Over Arrest Timing
Following the much-discussed arrest of MLA Pareshram Das, an audio response from senior Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh surfaced in the public domain, raising intriguing political questions. In his recorded reaction, Ghosh alleged that Pareshram Das was never arrested as long as he remained aligned with the camp led by Ritabrata Banerjee. However, Ghosh controversially claimed that the moment the MLA recently demonstrated his renewed loyalty towards Mamata Banerjee and shifted his allegiance back, the authorities swiftly moved in and arrested him. This public statement by Kunal Ghosh has added a fresh political twist to the entire episode, sparking intense debates across political circles.