Kolkata, Aug 17 (IANS): Two companies with Sukanya Mondal, daughter of Trinamool Congress strongman Anubrata Mondal, as their director giving huge amounts of unsecured loans was probably an important avenue for channelising the proceeds of the cattle smuggling scam to different avenues, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probing the matter suspects.
Studying the books of accounts of ANM Agrochem Foods Private Limited and Neer Developer Private Limited, both having Sukanya Mondal as one of the two directors, the CBI sleuths found that both these companies gave huge amounts of unsecured loans amounting to around Rs 7 crore.
ANM Agrochem's unsecured loan amount was much higher at around Rs 4.5 crore, as against Neer Developer's Rs 2.4 crore.
"Since the beginning of our investigation, we had doubts that these companies were shell companies floated with the intention of channelising the money collected through illegal means to different avenues. Now, it seems that this channelising work was done under the garb of unsecured loans.
"It is also possible that the money paid as commission to different beneficiaries of the illegal cattle trade were shown as unsecured loans in the books of accounts," a CBI official said.
Sources said that to question Sukanya Mondal, a team of four CBI officials, including a woman official, reached her ancestral residence at Bolpur on Wednesday afternoon. However, she refused to entertain them or answer their queries on this count.
The CBI has already approached a special court in Asansol, under whose jurisdiction Birbhum district comes, for a court order to question her.
However, on Wednesday the judge of the concerned bench hearing the cattle smuggling matter did not turn up. The CBI sleuths have submitted the related documents to the court so that the matter can come up for hearing at the earliest.
Once the CBI gets the court order on this count, Sukanya Mondal will be left with two options -- first, to appear before the CBI and answer the queries, or face arrest like her father, who is under CBI custody as one of the prime accused in the case.