3 Jharkhand Congress MLAs caught with cash in Bengal, party alleges BJP's 'Operation Lotus' exposed
The MLAs reportedly claimed authorities they had travelled to Kolkata's Barabazar with the money to give it to tribal people. The MLAs' attorneys said that they were unable to see their clients. Police, income tax, and CID officers interrogated the group in addition to the police.
FollowFollowing the detention of three Jharkhand-based Congress members in Bengal with "a significant sum" of cash in their vehicle, the party attempted to tie the arrests to the BJP by claiming that the three politicians had been paid to bring down the state government. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-Congress alliance administration, according to the BJP, is corrupt, as shown by the money.
Irfan Ansari from the Jamtara Assembly constituency, Rajesh Kacchap from the Khijri (Scheduled Tribe) Assembly constituency, and Naman Bixal Kongari from the Kolebira (Scheduled Tribe) Assembly constituency are the three Congress MLAs who were detained by the police on Saturday after a vehicle in which they were all travelling had cash worth more than 48 lakh seized from it.
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The Congress has claimed that the BJP's "Operation Lotus" in Jharkhand has been revealed as a result of three party MLAs being reportedly found in possession of a significant quantity of cash in Howrah, West Bengal. Jairam Ramesh, general secretary of the Congress, said, "The BJP's 'Operation Lotus' in Jharkhand stands exposed tonight in Howrah."
He added that the saffron party's strategy is to repeat what it accomplished in Maharashtra in Jharkhand. "Hum Do's game plan is to establish the E-D pair in Jharkhand, just like they did in Maharashtra," Ramesh continued.
The MLAs reportedly claimed authorities they had travelled to Kolkata's Barabazar with the money to give it to tribal people. The MLAs' attorneys said that they were unable to see their clients. Police, income tax, and CID officers interrogated the group in addition to the police. According to Howrah Rural Police sources, Khijri and Kolebira are two particularly tribal areas in Jharkhand that the three Congress MLAs claim to represent.
According to a representative of the Howrah Rural Police, "They (Congress MLAs) informed us that they intended to acquire sarees in big quantities from Burrabazar wholesale market for the purpose of distribution in their respective constituencies on the next World Tribal Day on August 9, 2022."
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Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the president of the West Bengal Congress and a member of the Lok Sabha, responded to the arrest of the three Congress lawmakers late on Saturday night by saying that if it turns out that the three Jharkhand MLAs were involved in any illegal activities, they must be punished and the Congress leadership will not protect them.
Irfan Ansari, Rajesh Kachchap, and Naman Bixal Kongari, three Congress MLAs, were travelling in an SUV when it was stopped on National Highway-16 near Ranihati in the vicinity of Panchla police station due to a tip-off.
