West Bengal: Acting ED Director reaches Kolkata in view of attack on ED officers

Kolkata: ED director in-charge Rahul Naveen will review the investigation into the alleged public distribution and paddy procurement scam and discuss security concerns of the local ED establishment in the backdrop of attacks on the central probe agency’s search teams in West Bengal. Official sources gave this information on Tuesday.

The ED chief, who arrived here at midnight, is expected to meet senior officials of the agency’s regional office in Kolkata as well as the injured officers on Tuesday, sources said.

He is also likely to meet West Bengal Governor CV Anand Bose at the Raj Bhavan here.

Three ED officials were injured and their mobiles, laptops and wallets were “looted” when they reached Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district on January 5 to search the premises of TMC leader Shajahan Shaikh.

Sheikh is currently absconding and the ED has issued a Look-Out Circular (LC) against him and alerted all land, air and sea ports to prevent him from fleeing the country.

On the same day, during the arrest of another TMC leader Shankar Aadhya at Bongaon in the said district, another team of the agency was attacked and their vehicle damaged.

The ED claimed in a press statement that the magnitude of this “scam” was “huge” and the amount of crime transferred by a suspect was Rs 9,000-10,000 crore, of which Rs 2,000 crore “is suspected to be transferred to Dubai directly”. Or through Bangladesh”.

West Bengal minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Jyotipriya Mallik and his aide Bakibur Rehman were arrested by the ED during its investigation last year, while Aadya was arrested last week.

The money laundering charge sheet against Mallik, Rehman and a company NPG Rice Mill was filed by Agency B.