West Bengal CM links Birbhum revenue leak to previous dispensation

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari alleged a Rs 15,000 crore revenue leak in Birbhum over 15 years, blaming the previous government. He cited the seizure of cash, gold and properties linked to stone trader Tullu Mondal during an illegal mining crackdown

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday alleged an around Rs 15,000 crore revenue leak in Birbhum district over the past 15 years, and said it would not have been possible without the support of the previous dispensation.

Multiple government departments were either complicit or remained silent under directions from the “highest level”, he alleged during a press conference.

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His allegations came against the backdrop of police recovering Rs 28.5 crore in cash and 15 kg of gold from absconding stone trader Tullu Mondal’s residence in West Bengal’s Birbhum as part of a wider crackdown on alleged illegal mining and revenue leakages in the district.

Police suspect a substantial portion of the cash represented revenue allegedly siphoned off. The district has for long been under the scanner over allegations of illegal quarrying and organised crime linked to stone trade.

Targeting his predecessor Mamata Banerjee, Adhikari said, “An organised racket siphoning off revenue for years… cannot function without the concurrence of the head of the institution.” “Without the support of former chief minister Mamata Banerjee, it is impossible for such a large racket to have operated for so long. Institutional corruption happens only when the head of the institution encourages corruption.” “If directions do not come from the highest level, no one would take a look at Mondal. Officials were forced to keep their eyes closed. As the then head of the government, the ultimate responsibility lies with the former chief minister,” he told the press conference.

Adhikari said that during the crackdown, bank accounts of Tullu Mondal holding Rs 93 crore have been frozen. Investigators have also traced 21 properties, seven houses, a farmhouse, two petrol pumps, a parking facility, stone mines, crushers and 300 bighas of land, all of which were being seized, he told reporters here.

As many as 242 vehicles, including luxury cars, have also been identified, the chief minister said, adding that Tullu Mondal’s ill-gotten assets worth nearly Rs 150 crore, including cash, gold and jewellery, have already been seized.

He refrained from commenting on the arrest of a suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed member from Burdwan as the matter was “very sensitive”. “The Special Task Force is investigating the case and would brief the media on August 1,” he said.