CBI summons TMC youth leader Vinay Mishra’s brother in cattle smuggling & coal scam probe

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has summoned TMC youth leader Vinay Mishra's brother Vikas Mishra in the ongoing cattle smuggling and coal scam probe, sources told Republic Media Network. The development comes after the central investigating agency widened its probe last week sending summons to West Bengal officials. Mishra is not yet traceable and the CBI has issued a lookout notice for him as well. 

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at 12 locations in Kolkata and its adjacent areas on Monday in connection to the coal and cattle smuggling cases. As many as 12 teams of ED officers conducted raids with the assistance of the CRPF personnel. The first team raided the house of businessman Ganesh Bagaria. It is alleged that the alleged kingpin of coal smuggling, Anup Majhi alias Lala, invested money through Bagaria.

CBI summons six Bengal police officials

Last week, the CBI also summoned six West Bengal police officials in the ongoing investigation of the cattle-smuggling and illegal coal mining cases. Reportedly, the DGP and inspector ranker officers were asked to appear before the central agency at its Nizam Palace office in Kolkata.

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On December 31, the CBI had carried out searches at multiple locations in West Bengal including the premises of TMC leader Vinay Mishra, considered close to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, in connection with the cattle smuggling case. The CBI had done a preliminary enquiry which showed that cattle smuggling was rampant along the India-Bangladesh border which is allegedly aided by some corrupt officers of the BSF and Customs receiving illegal gratification from smugglers.

In November last year, the CBI had raided 45 locations across West Bengal, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar relating to illegal mining and theft of coal from Eastern Coalfield Limited (ECL), according to reports. The agency has gone full steam on the cases related to West Bengal with Director RK Shukla asking the team probing Saradha and related ponzi scam to complete filing of all the FIRs before January 2021, PTI said. The state is going for assembly elections in 2021.

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