Cracking down on extortionists running the 'Syndicate Raj' in the real estate sector and rowdies, West Bengal police has arrested over a thousand people in specific cases and around 8,000 under preventive sections.
Additional Director General of Police (law and order) Anuj Sharma said all districts and police commissionerates in the state conducted an operation together yesterday to nab rowdies and extornists.
Altogether 1,023 people were arrested in specific cases while 7,972 were held under preventive sections, he said adding that they executed 1520 warrants.
A number of firearms, ammunition, bombs, illegal crackers, ganja and heroin were also seized.
Around 26000 litres of illicit liquor were also seized.
"There is a tendency among culprits that when we have a crackdown in one district they run away into another. So we conducted this in all districts," Sharma said.
Among the arrests, the largest number was from Burdwan followed by Nadia and North 24 Parganas near Kolkata.
Sharma said they would continue to do such crackdown in future also.
During the day, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee asked police to take strict action against the 'Syndicate Raj'.
She also had meetings with the top brass of the police including DGP and Kolkata Commissioner of Police.
