TMC strike call

Vivek Chhetri, TT, Darjeeling, Dec. 23: The hill Trinamul today said the party would be forced to block roads in Darjeeling if the "masterminds" of the November 8 Assam arms haul case were not arrested immediately.

In the FIR that the CID had filed in the arms case, 14 accused,including Sanjay Thulung, elected GTA Sabha member, are named.

The only two persons arrested in the case are Umesh Kami and Ganesh Chhetri, who were ferrying the arms in a vehicle from Assam to Bengal.

The Trinamul today took out a rally and raised slogans outside the office of the Darjeeling deputy superintendent of police. Later, Rajen Mukhia, the president of the Trinamul hill unit, and other party leaders met Darjeeling police chief Akhilesh Chaturvedi and submitted a petition.

Mukhia said: "The arms case is a serious issue. However, till date, the masterminds have not yet been arrested. We want those involved in the case to be arrested before Didi(Mamata Banerjee) comes to Darjeeling in January. If the police fail to arrest the accused, we will be forced to start roadblocks across the hills."