Money is flying in the wind - Kolkata could rename itself as the City of Crorepatis

The Enforcement Directorate ED unearthed another crorepati in Kolkata – nicknamed the City of Joy. This time the crorepati happens to be a man from the Garden Reach area. Over the past month, the ED has arrested a few persons with political links and recovered crores of rupees. They are Partha Chatterjee who was a minister in the Trinamool Congress TMC government, and a woman Arpita Banerjee who was a friend of Partha. Later the Central Bureau of Investigation CBI arrested two more – they are Anubroto Mondal and Raju Sahani, both are leaders of the TMC. CBI is also a central government agency. Right now, the ED is conducting raids at multiple locations in Kolkata. It is probing an alleged case of fraud through a mobile gaming app and have zeroed in on the house of a businessman in the Garden Reach area of Kolkata. The ED has already seized Rs 17.32 crore and the figure could increase because counting is still underway. The cash, in denomination of mostly Rs 500 and Rs 2000, was concealed in several trunks in the residence. Rs 17.32 crore seized by ED in massive cash haul from Kolkata businessman in gaming app scam.

The ED has registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). This was based on a complaint filed by a bank against the accused and others for defrauding the users of a mobile gaming app called E-Nuggets. It seems they managed to gain the confidence of the users of the App by rewarding them with commission and other means. Once they gained the initial confidence, the users invested bigger amounts. Subsequently, the accused scrapped the App quoting reasons like system upgradation, investigation by LEAs etc. and erased all the data pertaining to the investors.

Durga Puja from outside India and within –

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More embarrassment for Trinamool Congress as CBI arrests another of its leaders in a chit fund case

In was yet another embarrassment for Trinamool Congress and its supremo Mamata Banerjee. After the arrests of one of her ministers Partho Chatterjee and Anubrato Mondal, a leader of one of its units, the CBI has now arrested yet another of its leaders. The former two were arrested by Enforcement Directorate and the latter by the CBI respectively. Both are agencies of the central government. This time the TMC leader was the chairman of the Halisahar Municipality. His name is Raju Sahani and he is believed to be involved in a chit fund case. The CBI has recovered huge amount of cash from his residence. It seems he has bank accounts in foreign countries and is in possession of documents pertaining to properties worth Rs 2.75 crores. West Bengal: CBI arrests Trinamool Congress leader Raju Sahani in chit fund case. Abhishek Banerjee, the nephew of Mamata Banerjee, was also interrogated by Enforcement Directorate regarding the alleged scam related to coal pilferage.

The Trinamool Congress blames the center, labels these arrests as intimidation tactics and says these will not work. The fight is on. As things stand, the arrests of Partha Chatterjee and his close aide Arpita Mukherjee had links to the multi-crore West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment irregularities scam. They are in judicial custody of the ED. On the other hand, it was the CBI that arrested TMC heavyweight Mondal. It was in connection with the alleged multi-crore cattle smuggling case in West Bengal. Mamata has disowned Partha but has stood by Anubrato.

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The CBI special court sends TMC leader Anubrata Mondal to jail

Another embarrassment for the Trinamool Congress as the Central Bureau of Investigation CBI special court sends TMC Birbhum district president Anubrata Mondal to jail. The new address for the heavyweight leader for 14 days is Asansol Correctional Home. Already the Enforcement Directorate ED has sent Partha Chatterjee, another heavyweight leader of Trinamool, to another jail. He was involved in being in possession of unaccounted money. Both the CBI and ED are under the central government. The CBI lawyer wanted judicial custody of Anubrata Mondal and had appealed for rejection of bail. This was because of the serious nature of the case and the possibilities of tampering with the evidence. The individual is an “influential” person and will now be produced before the court on September 7. Cattle smuggling case: TMC leader Anubrata Mondal sent to 14-day judicial custody. The new address for the heavyweight leader for 14 days will be Asansol Correctional Home.

Prior to arriving in court, Anubrata had said that his health was good. Ha also made a mention of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. He said she had done "enough" for him. It is posssible, his jail might have an effect on the strategy of the Chief Minister. Incidentally, the special CBI court judge had received a threat letter. It mentioned, “if Mondal is not ‘released’ then he and his family ‘would be framed in the NDPS case’.” When Mondal brought the matter, the judge said – the incident had no bearing on the ongoing proceedings in the case against Mondal.

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Society is in peril when leaders use unparliamentarily language in public

Bengal is passing through difficult times. Charges of corruption against political leaders is not new but these have been rocking the scenario in Bengal. First, it was Parthha Chatterjeee, a minister who is believed to have minted a fortune. He was an influential leader of the Trinamool Congress and used to be close to a film actress Arpita Banerjee of Tollywood. Both came under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate and are presently in jail. He lost his ministerial berth and many other portfolios. He was a minister but the party did not stand by him. Its suoremo Mamata Banerjee threw him to the wolves. Then the cattle smuggling racket came to the forefront. This time it was the Central Bureau of Invetigation at work. Here, Anubrata Mondal, another heavyweight of the same party was involved. This person loved to use unparliamentarily language in public. Moreover, he enjoyed the blessings of Mamata Banerjee the party supremo. In fact, she came out openly in his support. That changed the equation. As protests over corruption grow in Bengal, more Trinamool leaders began to use threatening language. Emboldened by her open support to Anubrata, another Trinamool leader used unparliamentarily language in public. The worst part is that this leader Saugata Roy was a retired physics professor in a college and well educated. People held him in high esteem. It was strange to hear such an educated person speak in an uncouth language and utter such words.

There have been earlier instances of leaders using filthy language. It hurts society when well-educated and apparently genteel leaders use threatening language. Kalyan Banerjee, a senior counsel of the Calcutta High Court, hurled intimidating abuses from a public rally recently in Hooghly district. He said - “If Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee are maligned, the opposition parties will be beaten up.” Then there was Madan Mitra, another Trinamool Congress legislator who advised his followers to practice stick combats and set up special centers for training. He even promised to supply the sticks.

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More trouble for Trinamool Congress – focus shifts to Anubrata Mondal’s daughter

In Bengal, recruitment for schoolteachers depends on candidates clearing the West Bengal Teacher Eligibility Test (WBTET). This is usually known as the TET. It seems Anubrata Mondal’s daughter got employed as a primary teacher without appearing for the qualifying examination. Not only she but also a few other members of Anubrata’s family also got employed and none of them cleared the TET. This has come to light only now. There have been complaints and the Kolkata High Court has directed these individuals to appear in Court immediately. They have to appear with their TET qualifying certificates and appointment letters. SSC Scam: More Trouble for Anubrata As Calcutta HC Summons Daughter Who Got Job ‘Without Qualifying TET’. This has added to the problems of the Trinamool Congress leader Anubrata Mondal. He has already been arrested in cattle smuggling case. Now, his name is linked to the West Bengal school recruitment scam.

It seems Anubrata Mondal’s daughter never physically attended the school. Her school was within the Bolpur circle and was within walking distance from her home. Moreover, the school would send over the attendance register to her residence for her to sign. To add to the miseries of her father, the CBI has reportedly seized around Rs 17 crores from fixed deposits in banks belonging to him and his relatives. They have frozen the accounts. CBI has also located a large number of immovable assets owned by the father-daughter duo in various places in Bolpur, Kolkata and other places.

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Assets and properties of 19 TMC leaders including some ministers under scanner

After the revelation of reported assets of Partha Chatterjee, his removal from the cabinet as minister and jail sentence, the assets and properties of some more TMC leaders are under scanner of the authorities. There are 19 of the leaders and seven of them are ministers in the cabinet. They are Firhad Hakim, Bratya Basu; Jyotipriyo Mullick, Maloy Ghatak, Arup Roy, Javed Ahmed Khan; and Seuli Saha. There are two more leaders who are now deceased – they are Subrata Mukherjee and Sadhan Pandey. Details are at this link. HC directs ED to be party in PIL on assets of 19 TMC leaders, ministers. This is based on a PIL filed by an individual in 2017. It raised questions about the “spectacular growth in assets of 19 Trinamool legislators, parliamentarians and ministers of the state government.” The information is based on the affidavits the leaders had filed with the Election Commission of India (ECI) when they filed their nominations for various elections. These revealed the growth of their assets over the years.

It is interesting to note that some of these names have links to the major Durga Pujas like Firhad Hakim (Chetla Agrani) and Subrata Mukherjee (Ekdalia Evergreen). Another TMC leader Partho Chatterjee, who had links to another high profile puja, is in trouble. It is the Naktala Udayan puja. These festivals involve huge sums of money and might have tempted some leaders to become careless. The financial position of those in high places should be more transparent. They should be careful when entrusted with funds associated with cultural programs like the Durga puja. It does not look nice when they pray to God for the welfare of their people while dipping their hands into the cash box.

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Politicians are like chameleons

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Politicians are like chameleons

Horse-trading is a term one hears often. It does not relate to horses but to politics and is usually associated with politicians who switch loyalties for any type of gains. These politicians have hardly any ethics and take sides depending on which way the wind blows. As a result, they are able to call the shots and mint money. There are innumerable movies that deal with this theme and the whole world knows about such individuals but have to accept the inevitable. The government has formulated laws to check floor crossing but the world of chameleons keep spreading. An example is of a member of the BJP who moved into the TMC camp and has become a minister within a short time. He is a well-known singer, had once met the TMC supremo and shared jhal-muri with her.Ego Tussle With BJP Leaders, Warm Ties With Mamata: How Babul Supriyo Changed Tunes

Greed has ruined politics. Today it is all about who can call the shots. In view of rampant unemployment, members of political parties at the grass root level keep searching for options to make money. They try to pressurize the locals into shelling out money. Initially these are for minor reasons like celebrating a festival. The organizers are usually those who love to show off their muscle power. Over a period, they form groups and join political parties. In the beginning, it is all hunky dory but when discontent sets in, they change sides. Some of them turn into demons, others fade into oblivion or perish.

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Nothing new in the results of Assembly Elections 2022 – BJP captures four states and AAP gets its Punjab

Yes – the Bharatiya Janata Party BJP won four of the states. These were the all-important Uttar Pradesh with its tourist spots, Uttarakhand which is another travel destination, Goa with its beaches, carnivals and feni and Manipur famous for its dances. Aam Aadmi Party AAP led by the dynamic Arvind Kejriwal seized power in Punjab. It showed that a regional party like AAP could shake an empire. The Indian National Congress appears to be directionless and is gradually losing relevance. It needs infusion of new blood, a leader who can lead by example and who can call the shots.

Mamata Banerjee, the Trinamool Congress TMC supremo from Bengal wanted to wage a war by creating a new front of small regional parties. She did send across teams of her loyal followers to Manipur and Goa while she herself went to Uttar Pradesh. She had meetings with the Samajbadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav. However, her efforts went in vain. Political parties should realize that it is not easy for a regional leader to sway the sentiments of the locals. Any state has its unique problems and an outsider cannot change their line of thinking or provide solutions.

Industries just do not gel with West Bengal

Bengalis love poetry and it is difficult to imagine one who loves his pen to take up cudgels of machines – the two just not gel and, as experience has shown, the results are not what one would have liked.
Bengal is basically an agriculture based area where paddy fields swaying in the breeze are what one wants to see.
Therefore, when one wants to change track, one has to go in for some sort of sacrifice. One cannot get something from nothing. Unfortunately, the leaders have forgotten that simple basic.

The conflict surrounding the industrialization on West Bengal hinges on availability of land – the state keeps on talking about a sort of land bank but the investors appear to be a confused lot just like the administrators. There are vague ideas about the land scattered in small pockets and that does not appeal to the investors.
Mamata did not want industries to come up on agricultural land. Her agitation, on behalf of a section of farmers, was a big gain for her and her Trinamool Congress TMC because it led to the fall of the Left Front government and she came to power. She promised to ensure return of land to the unwilling owners but, that was, practically, a pipe dream because Tata Motors had constructed their workshops and the land was unsuitable for agriculture.
Mamata Banerjee’s land policy is now her Achilles’ heel because, when industries are categorically advised to procure land on their own by interacting directly with the landowners, it opens up the doors of corruption. Her land policy has still not changed even after being four years in power and, the net result is disappointment on the industrial front in spite of putting up a brave front.
It has been reported that she has now roped in Sourav Ganguli, the cricketer, to promote industries in her state through a reality show. Reality shows of songs, dance and even laughter do have audiences but, how far it will help the state to improve its image and raise its head is a matter of debate. Yes, Sourav Ganguli does have an enormous fan following and it remains to be seen how far he can influence industrialists to invest in West Bengal. (to be continued …)

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