TMC leader Anubrata Mandal sent to 14-day custody in animal smuggling case

Mandal has been arrested in the animal smuggling case and was produced in a special CBI court in Asansol today. His 14-day CBI custody ends on Wednesday.

The TMC leader was picked up by the probe agency from his Bolpur home on August 12 after the CBI said they found Mandal’s direct involvement in the cattle smuggling scam.

Birbhum district president said earlier today that he wants a CBI probe into the threat letter against a judge of the Asansol special CBI court which is hearing an alleged animal smuggling case against him.

Asansol special CBI court judge Rajesh Chakraborty on Monday wrote to the Paschim Bardhaman district judge requesting him to look into the “threat” and bring it to the notice of the Registrar of Judicial Services, Calcutta High Court.

“I would like to request the judge to order a CBI inquiry,” Mandal said in response to questions from reporters about the threat letter.

‘If Mandal is not released on bail soon’

A letter threatening to implicate members of his family on a commercial scale in the NDPS case if Mandal is not released on bail early was sent to the officer-in-charge of the court, Judge Chakraborty wrote to the district judge.

When asked whether he expected to get bail, the TMC Birbhum district president said it was for the court to decide.

Asked if he wanted to send any message to the chief minister, Mandal said, “Mamata Banerjee has done a lot.”

On August 14, Banerjee stood with Mandal at a public meeting in Kolkata and asked what he had done to get arrested by the CBI.

He had alleged that agencies were being used to defame him.

The CBI is probing a case of cattle smuggling, in connection with which it has made several arrests, including that of Mandal. Since then he is in CBI custody.

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