Cattle smuggling: Delhi court sends Anubrata Mondal to judicial custody

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Tuesday sent TMC leader Anubrata Mondal to judicial custody till April 3, 2023, in an alleged case of cattle smuggling. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has recently brought him to Delhi after arresting him in a money laundering case revolving around the cattle smuggling case.

The Special Judge Raghubir Singh on Tuesday sent him to Tihar Jail till April 3. He was presented by ED in court after his remand period got over.

Appearing for Mondal, Advocate Mudit Jain earlier submitted that the investigations conducted are closed doors investigations without any site visit, which makes them lazy and unenterprising. Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Anubrata Mandal's default bail plea was recently dismissed by the trial Court.

Anubrata Mondal, Trinamool Congress party's president of Birbhum district Anubrata Mondal and said to be a close aide of chief minister Mamata Banerjee was earlier arrested by the CBI in connection with the same case on July 11.

Recently ED arrested him in the alleged multi-crore cattle smuggling scam after questioning him inside the Asansol jail where he was lodged. In the case, the court earlier noted that this case of ED is based upon the Scheduled Offence (CBI case), the proceedings of which are going on there at Asansol, West Bengal in a CBI Court and some accused have been running into Judicial custody in connection with those proceedings of the CBI case.

During Sehegal Hussain's (another accused) hearing, the ED had agitated that sources for funding of immovable and movable assets acquired by the accused are to be ascertained, and for that purpose, the accused is required to be confronted with certain other persons including his close relation so as to trace the trails of tainted money which allegedly runs into crores of rupees.

In April last year, the trial court had taken cognizance of a charge sheet filed by ED against other accused naming former Trinamool Congress youth wing leader Vinay Mishra, his brother Vikas Mishra and Mohammad Enamul Haque, the alleged kingpin of a cattle smuggling racket across India-Bangladesh border.

The trial Court noted that the prosecution complaint (Chargesheet) has been filed by the ED under Sections 44 and 45 of the Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act, 2002 for the commission of an offense under Sections 3 and 70 of PMLA punishable under Section 4 of PMLA.

The Trial Court judge while taking cognizance of the ED Chargesheet, said that he had gone through the complaint and the accompanying documents and there was sufficient material to proceed against the accused. Accordingly, the cognizance of the offense under Sections 3 and 70 PMLA punishable under Section 4 PMLA was taken.