Cattle Smuggling: TMC's Anubrata Mondal Moves Delhi HC Challenging Trial Court Production Warrant

Anubrata Mondal, the TMC's Birbhum district president and a close aide of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was arrested by the CBI in the case on August 11.

Delhi: Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Anubrata Mondal, who is lodged in an Asansol jail in a cattle smuggling case in West Bengal, Wednesday moved the Delhi High Court challenging a trial court order for producing him here in a money laundering case related to the case.

The petition came up before Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani who transferred it to the bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh as Mondal's counsel submitted that other connected matters are pending before Justice Singh.

Citing urgency, the counsel urged the court to list it for Wednesday itself. The prayer was allowed.  The production warrant was issued by a trial court here on December 19 on a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Mondal, the TMC's Birbhum district president and a close aide of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was arrested by the CBI in the case on August 11.

According to the ED, it registered the money laundering case following an FIR by the CBI in Kolkata against Satish Kumar, the then Commandant of the BSF.

The CBI FIR alleged that Mondal, along with Kumar, other public servants and private persons, was involved in the multi-crore cattle smuggling racket. 

Earlier this year, CBI and ED arrested TMC leader Anubrata Mondal for his alleged involvement in cow smuggling, turning the political spotlight onto allegations of cattle smuggling in the state.

The TMC has dubbed the allegations of corruption against the party as "baseless and politically motivated".

Meanwhile, BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul has claimed she has foiled an attempt to smuggle cattle across the border and rescued nine cows.

Paul, in a tweet, claimed she had stopped a truck loaded with cows on National Highway 2 on her way to Kolkata from Asansol.

"Stopped a truck loaded with cows Asked for papers but found none…Cow Smuggling is ON in full swing," she alleged in her tweet.

The fashion designer-turned-BJP leader also alleged that those in the truck told her that the police had been bribed to allow the "smuggling"

Reacting to Paul's comment, the TMC wondered whether the first-time BJP MLA had taken up the job of cow vigilante.

"Cows are transported from one part of the state to another in vehicles such as matadors and trucks. There is nothing new about it. The BJP MLA trying to find a cattle smuggling angle is nothing but an attempt to politicise the matter," TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said.