Coal smuggling case: Cash, gold seized by ED during raids in Bengal, Jharkhand

Kolkata, Nov 21 The Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials conducting raids and search operations at different places in West Bengal and Jharkhand since Friday morning have recovered huge amounts of cash and gold from some of these locations.

Sources aware of the development said that of the 25 locations in West Bengal and Jharkhand where the raids and search operations are being conducted, huge amounts of unaccounted cash and gold had been recovered from three places, all of which are in West Bengal.

However, the ED officials have yet to disclose the exact locations of the three places from where the cash and gold have been recovered.

Sources said that counting of the unaccounted cash to the tune of Rs 1 crore has already been completed, with the process still on at the time of the filing of the report. The ED officials have also arranged for the valuation of seized gold, mainly in the form of ornaments.

The exact value of the total recovery on Friday will be known later in the day, after counting of the currencies, and the valuation of the gold will be completed.

The places in West Bengal where the raid and search operations are conducted include the office and residence of a high-profile contractor of Coal India Limited’s subsidiary Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) at the coal belt of Asansol in the West Burdwan district of West Bengal.

Residences of three other businessmen, all linked to the coal trade, two at Salt Lake on the northern outskirts of Kolkata and one at Salap Crossing in Kolkata-adjacent Howrah district, are also being raided by the central investigating agency officials.

The ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have been conducting parallel probes in the multi-crore coal smuggling case. Recently, the CBI informed the court that the investigation in the matter will be wound up soon.

The current raids by the ED officials at multiple locations in West Bengal and Jharkhand come just a few days after the CBI’s submission at the court on this count.

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