National general secretary of Trinamul Congress, Abhishek Banerjee has lambasted the Bharatiya Janata Party in Birbhum district today alleging why cattle smuggling has not stopped, now that Anubrata Mondal is in jail.

Incidentally, Birbhum district president Anubrata Mondal, his daughter Sukanya Mondal and bodyguard Sehgal Hussein are all lodged in Tihar jail in Delhi in connection with the cross-border -Bangla cattle smuggling.

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This will be the first Lok Sabha polls in which the Trinamul Congress will contest in absence of its ‘chanakya’ in Birbhum district Anubrata Mondal.

Mondal has remained as the most trusted party leader of Trinamul chairperson Mamata Banerjee.

The comments of Abhishek has created a political storm. Talking to the media persons at Tarapith in Birbhum district today, Abhishek has alleged that if Anubrata Mondal had joined the BJP, he would have been out of jail and living peacefully.

“He would have been innocent if he had joined the washing machine called BJP. But he has not joined the party. The ED, CBI, friends of the BJP, have levelled serious charges against him and lodged him in jail,” he alleged.

“Cattles are smuggled to Bangladesh via Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Both states are run by BJP-led and alliance chief ministers.

Then, why till date those two chief ministers have not been summoned by the ED and CBI so far? Even the border is guarded by the BSF which is under the Union home ministry,” the TMC national general secretary questioned.

Since August 2022, Mondal has been lodged in jail. “Only 10 days ago, state police had intercepted and seized a truck full of cattle coming from Uttar Pradesh from Memari in East Burdwan. TMC has no representative in UP and Bihar, but cattle are being smuggled regularly, though Anubrata, the alleged mastermind claimed by ED, CBI and BJP is behind the bars since the past 18 months,” he alleged.

Abhishek further said that after joining the washing machine called BJP, leaders like Himanta Biswa Sarma, Ajit Pawar, Narayan Rane, Ashok Chavan, Suvendu Adhikari have become clean.