Ration scam: ED officers assaulted by TMC leader's loyalists during raid in West Bengal
Kolkata, Jan 5: ED officers were on Friday assaulted and their vehicles were damaged allegedly by supporters of TMC leader Sheikh Sajahan when they tried to raid his residence in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district in connection with their probe into the ration distribution scam.
The ED officers are conducting raids at 15 places in the state during the day and Sajahan's house is one of them, an officer said.
A large number of TMC loyalists first gheraoed the ED officials and the central forces personnel who accompanied them when they reached Sheikh's residence in Sandeshkhali area in the morning and demonstrated before assaulting them and forcing them to leave the area, the officer said.
One of the officers suffered head injuries and had to be taken to a hospital, he said.
Sajahan is considered to be a close aide of state minister Jyotipriyo Mallick who was arrested in connection with the multi-crore ration distribution scam.
"This kind of attack is unprecedented. We have sent a report on Shiekh Sajahan to our Delhi office," the ED officer told PTI.
Sajahan's supporters attacked the officials and the central forces personnel when they tried to break the lock of the gate of his residence which was not opened by the TMC leader despite several calls made by them, he said.
Senior police officers including the SP of North 24 Parganas district did not communicate when the ED officers tried to contact them, he alleged.
The ED officers are conducting raids at 15 places in West Bengal in connection with the scam.
#WATCH | Members of #ED team who received injuries during an attack on their vehicle in #WestBengal's Sandeshkhali today, have been shifted to a local hospital in #Kolkata
— Hindustan Times (@htTweets) January 5, 2024
đš ANI pic.twitter.com/KAnNGsgJWW
Horrific. The Law & Order Situation in West Bengal is in shambles.
— Suvendu Adhikari • āĻļā§āĻā§āĻ¨ā§āĻĻā§ āĻ āĻ§āĻŋāĻāĻžāĻ°ā§ (@SuvenduWB) January 5, 2024
ED Officials & CRPF Jawans brutally attacked in Sandeshkhali; North 24 Parganas district, while conducting Raid at TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan's house.
I doubt that Rohingyas are present amongst the Anti National… pic.twitter.com/XHboQsBVSX
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ED cracks down on suspected interstate liquor racket, raids 9 sites in Arunachal
Itanagar (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate has carried out coordinated searches at nine locations across Arunachal Pradesh in connection with a suspected large-scale interstate liquor smuggling and money laundering network, officials said on Monday.
The action, taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), is part of an expanding probe that points to a syndicate exploiting tax differentials among states.
Officials said liquor designated for sale within Arunachal Pradesh was allegedly diverted and supplied illegally to markets in Assam and other states.
The searches, conducted earlier this week, spanned multiple towns such as Itanagar, Naharlagun, Seppa, Ziro, Daporijo, Namsai and Roing, targeting wholesale liquor businesses suspected of being linked to the network.
According to officials, the investigation stems from a series of FIRs registered by Assam Police over the illegal transportation of liquor from Arunachal Pradesh into Assam.
Inputs from the Assam Excise Department further strengthened the case. An Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) was registered on October 17, 2024, and later widened through an addendum incorporating 173 additional FIRs.
Earlier searches conducted on February 4 last year, at premises linked to three alleged key operators, believed to be major liquor manufacturers, had revealed indications of a well-coordinated operation.
Investigators suspect that the network functioned through a chain of manufacturers, bonded warehouses and wholesalers, while masking real ownership using proxy arrangements such as tribal partnerships and dummy licence holders.
During the latest ED operations, the agency found that several wholesale units were operating under proxy licences issued in the names of local individuals, while actual control remained with the suspected masterminds.
Financial scrutiny revealed that between 51 and 90 per cent of total credits in certain bank accounts comprised unexplained cash deposits.
Investigators also flagged a pattern of invoice splitting, with transactions deliberately kept below Rs 2 lakh to avoid scrutiny. In one instance, more than 200 invoices of identical value of Rs 1,99,554 were generated within a single month at one location.
On-ground staff reportedly confirmed that records, including stock registers and daily cash collections, were being routed to offices associated with the alleged controllers.
The ED said it seized approximately Rs 40 lakh in unaccounted cash during the searches.
In a significant finding, 14 seals, some purportedly belonging to the Excise Department of the Arunachal Pradesh government, were recovered from one of the premises. These are suspected to have been used to create fake transport permits to facilitate the unauthorised movement of liquor.
Further investigation is underway, officials added.
