GTA chairman held for ‘trying to sale fake coins’

Deep Gazmer & Pinak Priya Bhattacharya, TNN, Mar 5, 2015, DARJEELING: Police on Tuesday night arrested Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) Sabha chairman Pradip Pradhan and 10 others from a hotel in Siliguri for trying to sell fake antique coins to a businessman.

Pradhan is an elected sabhasad from the Poobsering-Pandam constituency in Darjeeling and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) vice-president.

According to police sources, Pradhan was picked after businessman Rabi Kirtanya lodged a complaint with the Pradhannagar police station. Kirtanya alleged that Pradhan was trying to sell him fake antique coins.

According to a police officer, Pradhan had pegged the value of the coins at Rs 13 lakh and Kirtanya had paid Rs 50,000 in advance.

"On Monday, the buyer brought an expert from Kolkata who confirmed that the coins were fake. On the pretext of arranging the remaining amount, Kirtanya reached the police station and lodged a complaint," the source said.

While Siliguri police commissioner Manoj Verman confirmed the arrest of 11 people, Siliguri police commissionerate DC-headquarters OG Paul said the group was booked under sections 120B and 420 and police were checking the authenticity of the "antique pieces".

Others arrested are Subash Lama, Dipen Chhetri, Sajan Tamang, Deep Thapa, Sachin Biswakarma, Surya Bhakta Adhikari, Sanjiv Mitra, Rabi Giri, R P Gautam and Nirmal Das.

On Wednesday, the accused were produced in the additional chief judicial magistrate court in Siliguri.

Pradhan and eight others were sent to judicial custody while Biswakarma and Mitra sent to police remand for five days.

GJM president Bimal Gurung, who was in Kalimpong on Wednesday, preferred to check the facts before making a comment.

"I came to know about the arrest on my way to Kalimpong. I will first make an enquiry to know the truth and then comment. However, if the arrest is politically motivated I will act accordingly," he said.

Gurung's party colleague and GJM assistant secretary Binay Tamang, however, saw the arrest as a move to derail the party's agitation programme for a separate state. "Such incidents takes place every time we plan an agitation for Gorkhaland. It's a ploy to derail our Delhi dharna programme," he said. Tamang said Pradhan had gone to Siliguri to arrange for the travel and logistics of the upcoming nine-day-long agitation in Delhi.