Syndicate leader held in arms case

KOLKATA: A syndicate member from Kasba was arrested on Monday, weeks after the detective department held an influential INTTUC Trinamool Congress labour wing leader and questioned Alipore's senior party functionary Pratap Saha.
The anti-rowdy squad (ARS) has arrested Munna Pandey in an arms case from Amherst Street. Police said Mishra -who has been named in murder, rioting and extortion cases since 2005 -has been playing a major role in controlling the Kasba syndicates.He allegedly had links with the Vivekananda flyover supply chains, claimed detective department sources.
The police said Pandey -who was released on bail in a murder case in 2005, had been threatening smaller syndicate members of Kasba to join his group for the past three years.“He was the one supplying raw material to the Kasba-based mixing plant that in turn was supplying cement to Vivekananda flyover,“ said a source.
“Munna owned a big const ruction materials syndicate and had been arm-twisting the smaller players in the area to shut their businesses and work for him. When person called Manoj Shaw had pro tested against this in 2014, he allegedly murdered him with help of his associates. He was arrested in this case but mana ged to get bail yet again last ye ar. Munna and his men have be en warning us with threats to close down our business and join his syndicate,“ said Md Usman, who was the first vic tim to lodge a case against Pandey.
His name had again crop ped up last year when a mob at tacked staffers of a private ho spital in Kasba.