Kasba new battleground for syndicates, land mafia

Changing socio-economic and political factors have turned

Kasba

into the latest conflict zone, where gang wars over real estate and territory control have become a common reality, instilling fear into the minds of thousands of families, who have made this pocket their home, capitalizing on the smooth connectivity with EM Bypass, a swank mall in the neighbourhood and the upcoming

New Garia-Airport

Metro link.


“We live in fear,” said a member of a family that has recently shifted to an upmarket complex behind Acropolis, the mall that has played a role in changing the character of the fledgling southern suburbs. “We shifted here, thinking the next urban boom will take place here. But we are shocked at the spurt in the crime rate here, street fights being a daily affair. A huge number of buses and autos are forever parked illegally on the linking roads. We now rue our decision of shifting here.”

Kasba’s strength—its connectivity—became its biggest bane. Flanked by Kasba connector on one side and Prince

Anwar Shah

Road connector on another, EM Bypass running perpendicular and Ballygunge station nearby, Kasba was an ideal location for a construction explosion. The neighbourhoods on either side of the connector started developing rapidly. Housing complexes mushroomed around Acropolis. Property prices nearly doubled in the past five years, ever since the construction of the New Garia-Airport link started. But crimes arrived on the heels of the realty explosion. The huge demand for landfill and construction materials spawned syndicates, vying to control localities and territories. Members of the syndicate included members from places as far as Sonarpur and Baruipur. Rivalry between the groups, which often take a violent turn, keeps the crime rate at pace with the realty prices. Given the current low opportunity for jobs, the real estate boom has sent hundreds of youngsters into the folds of land mafia and construction syndicates, caught in pitched battles.

“The pie is limited but more and more syndicates are joining in. Nobody wants to concede an inch or a rupee to another,” said a syndicate member in Bediadanga, where a man died in firing during a soiree last year.

“Over 50 groups operate here. Each is active in an area marked by local Trinamool leaders. Whether it is Munna or his arch rival, Sona Pappu or Dinu and Prabhash, all are rivals. They accuse each other of violating the zone restriction,” said a police officer.

Most toughs allegedly enjoy political patronage. The war between a local councillor and an MLA in the area is now a topic of discussion even among the ruling party. The main accused,

Munna Pandey

, who had allegedly tried to shoot at two last month, is reportedly close to the MLA. “I have only heard his name from people like you. I do not know him personal. An inquiry will establish facts,” he said. Munna, whose name entered Lalbazar diaries in a double murder case in 2009, switched his political allegiance two years later. He was arrested in 2014 in another murder case and in 2016, in an arms case.




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