Gangarampur: Two in cop net over illegal online gambling racket

BALURGHAT: In a major crackdown on an illegal online gambling racket, South Dinajpur police seized Rs 1.34 crore in cash and arrested two persons, including a school teacher, from Gangarampur.

The arrested teacher, Apurba Sarkar of Gangarampur, had been teaching science at Nayabazar High School since 2011. Another accused, Kunal Das of Champatali, was also arrested. Acting on specific leads, police raided Sarkar’s in-laws’ residence at Raghunathpur in Balurghat on Sunday night and recovered Rs 1.17 crore hidden in a cot and prayer room. An additional Rs 17 lakh was seized from his residence at Kayasthapara, raising the total haul to Rs 1.34 crore.

Police Superintendent Chinmay Mittal, addressing a press conference in Balurghat on Monday, said 14 people have been arrested so far. “Two of the accused, Apurba Sarkar and Kunal Das, have been produced before court and remanded to five days of police custody.

Our team, led by SDPO Gangarampur Dipanjan Bhattacharya, conducted operations in Balurghat and Gangarampur. Further interrogation is underway to identify others involved. The gambling websites have been ordered blocked,” Mittal stated.

The crackdown followed earlier arrests, including that of alleged kingpin Pintu Ghosh. Police later tracked Sarkar to Gangtok and brought him back into custody. Headmaster of Nayabazar High School, Mozammel Haque, expressed shock: “It is hard to believe. He had stopped attending school without notice since

August 27.”