West Bengal Police have arrested another government official in the financial embezzlement and corruption case linked to absconding Birbhum stone quarry owner Tulu Mandal, with the latest detainee identified as a former Land and Land Reforms officer from the Mohammadbazar area of Birbhum district. The arrest was made late on Saturday night, 4 October 2026, deepening a widening crackdown on a network allegedly responsible for defrauding the government of hundreds of crores of rupees.

Who Was Arrested

The arrested official has been identified as Sabyasachi Mandal, a former Block Land and Land Reforms Officer (BLRO) of Mohammadbazar Block who served in that post between 2022 and 2025. He is currently posted as a Collectorate and Land Acquisition Officer in Jhargram district. According to the police, Sabyasachi was summoned to Suri on Saturday for questioning, during which investigators found multiple inconsistencies in his statements, leading to his arrest late that night.

Investigative sources claim Sabyasachi had special contacts with Tulu Mandal and is accused of embezzling government revenue and abetting the circulation of fake receipts, also referred to as duplicate carbon receipts (DCRs).

Key Developments in the Case

The arrest of Sabyasachi Mandal is the latest in a string of detentions linked to the Tulu Mandal network. Last month, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of West Bengal Police arrested two individuals, including Bishwajit Saha, the treasurer of the BLRO office, after he was called for questioning on at least five separate occasions. He was ultimately arrested after investigators found inconsistencies in his statements.

Additionally, Kausar Ali, described as a close associate of Tulu Mandal, was arrested following multiple rounds of interrogation. Investigators allege that Kausar was responsible for managing several of Tulu's bank accounts and handling unaccounted income. Police reportedly seized multiple bank chequebooks from him at the time of his arrest.

Scale of the Alleged Fraud

According to investigators, Tulu Mandal allegedly exercised a near-monopoly over the stone and sand business across several areas in Birbhum, including Mohammadbazar and Nalhati, during the previous Trinamool Congress (TMC) government era. It is alleged that with the help of a section of the administration, his network printed fake DCRs, siphoned hundreds of crores of rupees from government revenue, and accumulated substantial undisclosed wealth.

The scale of the alleged fraud first came to public attention when a search of Tulu's brother-in-law Minar Mandal's residence yielded a recovery of ₹28.5 crore in cash and 15 kilograms of gold. Investigators estimate that Tulu Mandal has since fled the country, reportedly to Dubai or Turkey.

Legal Steps to Declare Tulu Mandal a Proclaimed Criminal

As the manhunt for the absconding quarry owner continues, the government's legal counsel has applied to the Suri District Court to have Tulu Mandal declared a 'proclaimed criminal' and to confiscate his assets. This step, typically invoked when an accused repeatedly evades arrest, signals that authorities are escalating the legal pressure even as the investigation into his network of officials and associates continues to expand.

With multiple arrests now recorded and investigators reportedly questioning several more individuals, the Tulu Mandal case is shaping up to be one of the most significant land and mining corruption probes in West Bengal in recent years.