Priyadarshini Mallick, the daughter of forest minister Jyotipriyo Mallick, arrived at the CGO complex today to submit various documents related to income and expenses. Ms Mallick spent only ten minutes at the ED office today and reportedly failed to meet the ED officials there. Upon emerging, she lost her temper and had a confrontation with journalists before leaving in her car. Notably, the allegations raised by the ED are not only against Jyotipriya Mallick in connection with the alleged ration pilferage scam, but also against his wife and daughter.
Mr Mallick, who previously served as food and supplies minister in the state government, is accused of having received payoffs from the prime accused in the ration pilferage case. On Friday, the family had appeared in court and accused the ED officials of wrongdoing. In the court, the ED’s lawyer claimed that in a sworn affidavit given to the Election Commission in 2015-16, Jyotipriya Mallick had shown Rs 45,000 in his wife’s account as part of his assets. The ED’s claim is that the same money has now grown to Rs 6 crores. On that day, the ED’s lawyer also claimed that Mr Mallick had opened a company under the name of a caregiver from their home.
The ED’s lawyer mentioned the minister’s wife and daughter, claiming that they found seals and stamps in their house from a company whose name the family claims not to know. Chat and call records of as many as 20 mobile phones seized by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sleuths from the arrested minister and his family in connection to the multi-crore ration pilferage case in West Bengal is expected to provide crucial clues that will be instrumental in establishing influential links with the case, said sources.
The 20 mobile phones seized in this connection, sources said, include those of the state forest minister Jyotipriya Mallick, his former and present personal assistants, his personal chartered accountants, some of his close family relations as well as some of his close associates.
Mr Mallick was arrested by ED sleuths in connection with the case early on Friday morning. In fact, sources added, the clues regarding the minister’s involvement in the matter was first revealed from a WhatsApp message from the mobile phone of Bakibur Rahman, the Kolkata-based businessman who was the first to be arrested by the ED sleuths in the ration distribution case.
The links of the other persons whose mobile phones have been seized by the central sleuths was also secured by the latter from the different WhatsApp chat messages recovered from Mr Rahman’s mobile. Sources added the process of data recovery from these 20 seized mobile phones has already been initiated by the ED and in due course they will take the help of the experts concerned for the recovery purpose.
The central agency sleuths believe that after full data recovery more crucial clues will be available that will help them in establishing the direct influential links with the ration distribution case. The ED counsel Phiroze Edulji has already updated a special court in Kolkata about these mobile phones and the possibilities of hidden clues in the data there.