The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday carried out searches at the residence and office of former Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Shaukat Mollah in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district as part of its ongoing investigation into a fatal explosion in Bhangar that took place ahead of the recently concluded Assembly elections.
An NIA team, accompanied by personnel from the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), arrived at Mollah’s house in Moukhali, located in the Bhangar area, in the morning. Officials said the operation involved nearly ten vehicles and formed part of a broader exercise to gather evidence linked to the blast case, reported The Telegraph.
Investigators simultaneously conducted searches at multiple locations, including several houses in Bamunia village, where the explosion had occurred. According to reports, Shaukat Mollah was not present when the agency reached his residence. However, his son, Imran Mollah, was brought to the premises by investigators and remained present during the search proceedings.
The agency is probing a crude bomb explosion that occurred in Dakshin Bamunia village on 19 March, in which one person died while three others suffered serious injuries. Investigators suspect bombs were allegedly being manufactured at the site when the explosion took place. Following the incident, the Indian Secular Front (ISF) had demanded that the matter be investigated by the NIA, citing concerns over the gravity of the case.
Apart from the residence, the agency also searched Saukat Mollah’s office as investigators examined documents and gathered materials believed to be relevant to the inquiry. During the operation, Mollah’s wife and daughter arrived at the residence while officials continued their search.
Security was heightened across the locality, with local police personnel stationed outside the premises to maintain law and order during the agency’s operation. The NIA had previously taken over the investigation and arrested several individuals in connection with the blast, including TMC leader Wahidul Islam. Officials confirmed that searches were also conducted at Islam’s residence as part of the continuing probe.
Investigators additionally visited the homes of persons who had reportedly transported those injured in the explosion to hospital, seeking to reconstruct the chain of events surrounding the incident.
Shaukat Mollah, a TMC leader who represented the Canning Purba Assembly constituency, secured electoral victories in both 2016 and 2021. Notably, his government-provided security cover was withdrawn by the West Bengal government in recent weeks. Mollah, lost to ISF’s Nausad Siddiqui in the recently conducted 2026 Bengal Assembly elections.
