Police on Thursday rounded up 11 people for forcibly trying to grab a six-cottah plot, worth an estimated Rs 25 crore.

Sophisticated firearms and more than a hundred live cartridges were seized from their possession in the sub-divisional town of East Champaran district on the India-Nepal border.

The suspected land mafia had come from outside Raxaul and were trying to intimidate residents by showing firearms to grab the land on Block Office Road of the town. A team, led by Raxaul deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Rakesh Kumar, however, rushed and contained the situation.

Angry residents blocked the Raxaul-Birganj main road and demanded the district magistrate and the SP's immediate intervention. They also raised slogans against Raxaul police inspector Rajeshwar Prasad for allegedly patronising the land-grabbers.

Raxaul-Birganj road is of strategic importance, as most goods-laden vehicles to Nepal pass through this road.

According to Raxaul DSP Rakesh Kumar, Kislay Kumar (Bihta), Amar Pratap Singh and Harendra Pandey both of (Chhapra), Dilip Kumar Singh (Mokama) Chandan Kumar Verma, Rajesh Kumar both of (Buddha Nagar, Patna), Rituraj (Jehanabad), Ravish Kumar (Rani Talab, Patna) Ram Jatan Singh (Sheikhpura), Sandeep Patel (Patliputra, Patna), Md Zabi Quraishi (Danapur) and Bipin Kumar Sharma (Patna), were arrested in connection the land-grab case.

According to the DSP, some residents own the land. The men apparently looked like outsiders and fired around 20 rounds, when residents protested. Police also fired four rounds to contain the situation.

The inspector was not available for comment.