ED raids multiple locations in West Bengal in crackdown on illegal infiltration and terror funding

The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday raided four locations across West Bengal, including premises linked to businessman Abdus Samad. The PMLA probe targets an organized network involved in terror funding and facilitating illegal infiltration via forged identity documents

Kolkata: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday carried out raids and search operations at four locations scattered across four districts in West Bengal under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, as part of the central agency’s investigation against an organised network engaged in arranging entry and settlement of illegal Bangladeshis and Rohingyas in the state, as well as terror funding.

The four districts where the ED operations are continuing since Thursday morning include Kolkata, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas and minority-dominated Murshidabad, with the last three districts having international borders with neighbouring Bangladesh and South 24 Parganas having a maritime and riverine border.

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The ED’s operations in West Bengal are part of its nationwide crackdown against such rackets on Thursday which included other states like Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Haryana, said sources aware of the development.

The central investigating agency is desperate to track down not only transactions worth crores of rupees behind such rackets, but also the associated network involved in preparing fake Indian identity documents for arranging settlement of illegal Rohingya and Bangladeshi infiltrators in West Bengal.

Sources said that the ED is conducting investigations against a number of voluntary organisations on this count, majority of which are West Bengal-based, who are actively involved in the illegal infiltration and illegal settlement rackets.

The investigating agency is probing specific clues on how fake Indian identity documents were prepared under the garb of welfare activities by these voluntary organisations operating in areas close to the India-Bangladesh borders, thus earning crores of rupees against the arrangements made.

The ED has also secured specific clues on how these organisations used bank accounts held by innocent people for making these illegal transactions.

Of the four locations, where the ED sleuths are conducting raids and search operations since Thursday morning, one is at Haroa area under the Basirhat subdivision in North 24 Parganas district, where parallel searches were conducted at a trust, an educational institution and a madrasa linked to businessman Abdus Samad.

The ED action followed the detection of large foreign-currency transactions in bank accounts associated with Abdus Samad.