Bengal ration distribution case: ED tracks two more Shahjahan-like networks

Kolkata, July 31 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has tracked the network which built empires over ill-gotten proceeds in the ration-distribution case similar to that of Sheikh Shahjahan, the arrested and suspended Trinamool Congress leader from Sandeshkhali.The ED officials detected this during their day-long raid and search operations at ten places in two districts of West Bengal on Tuesday, said sourcesIncidentally, the native district for these two empires is also North 24 Parganas and both have very strong ruling party connections.Sources said that one of the 10 places, where the ED official escorted by Central Armed Police Forces personnel raided, was the office of PG High Tech Rice Mill at Berachampa under Deganga community development block in North 24 Parganas.Investigation by the Central agency sleuths has revealed two important facts. The said entity is jointly owned by two brothers Alif Nur a.k.a. Mukul and Anisur Rahaman a.k.a. Bidesh, with the latter being Trinamool Congress’ Deganga block president.These two brothers, as revealed through investigation, are also the cousins of businessman Bakibur Rahman, the first to be arrested by the ED officials in the ration distribution case.Investigations have further revealed that the two brothers also ancestrally own a private B.Ed & D.El.Ed College which is quite profit-making. Bidesh successfully contested the panchayat elections in 2018 and became the PWD executive officer of Deganga panchayat samiti.After the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, he became the ruling party’s Deganga block president.Bidesh was quite cool in his reactions given to the media after the raid and search operation. “Raids by central agencies are regular affairs these days. However, we have extended full cooperation to the ED officials and handed them over all the documents that they sought. We will continue cooperating with the investigating officials in the coming days. They have seized my mobile phone,” he said.The second empire that has been tracked by the ED officials is that of Abdul Barik Biswas, known to be a close aide of former state food and supplies minister Jyotipriya Mallick, who is currently in judicial custody in connection with the ration distribution case.On Tuesday, the ED officials conducted raid and search operations at the residences of Biswas at Basirhat, Rajarhat and Barasat, all in North 24 Parganas district. The investigating officials also recovered cash worth Rs 20 lakh from his Rajarhat residence.Although he had never been directly into