Siliguri, 23rd May: In a major crackdown, plainclothes police from Pradhan Nagar Police Station busted a gold smuggling racket linked to Nepal–Mysore connections at a hotel near Siliguri Junction and arrested two persons, recovering 40 grams of foreign gold.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Krishna Sharma (42), a resident of Rajendra Nagar, and Shadab M (36), a resident of Mysore.
According to police sources, Shadab M had arrived in Siliguri from Mysore on the 20th May carrying foreign gold. The consignment was intended to be handed over to Krishna Sharma at a hotel near Siliguri Junction.
Acting on a tip-off, police raided the hotel and searched the room, recovering two gold biscuits weighing 20 grams each. The accused failed to produce valid documents for the gold, following which both were arrested. The duo was produced before the Siliguri court on Saturday.
Police suspect that a wider smuggling network involving Nepal and Mysore is active in the region, using hotels as transit points for small-scale gold exchanges. Further investigation is underway.