ED summons West Bengal police official for questioning in coal smuggling case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday (February 9, 2026) summoned the officer in charge of a police station in Paschim Bardhaman district of West Bengal in connection with a coal smuggling case, official sources said.

Manoranjan Mondal, the officer in-charge (OC) of Budbud police station in the district, was summoned days after the Central probe agency conducted searches at his residence, during which several documents were seized.

The police station comes under the jurisdiction of Asansol Durgapur Police Commissionerate. “The questioning is linked to the ongoing probe into the coal smuggling racket,” an officer said.

The agency has also summoned Chinmoy Mondal, said to be a close associate of coal smuggling accused Lala, in the same case. Investigators believe Mr. Chinmoy Mondal was “one of the key operatives” in the alleged racket, he said. The development comes ahead of the West Bengal Assembly election, with the agency stepping up its action in several high-profile cases.

Earlier, the ED had carried out searches at the residence of I-PAC founder Pratik Jain and at the organisation's office in an old coal smuggling case, triggering political controversy. The matter was later taken up by the Calcutta High Court and subsequently by the Supreme Court.

Following those developments, ED director Rahul Navin held high-level meetings with officials in Kolkata to review investigations into coal, sand, and other major cases, sources said. As part of the intensified probe, ED has questioned several businessmen in recent days and conducted searches on February 3 at multiple locations, including Raniganj and Jamuria in Asansol area.

During one such search, nearly ₹1.5 crore in cash was recovered from a businessman’s warehouse in Jamuria. Sources alleged that large sums were paid as “protection money” in the coal smuggling case and that the transactions had alleged links to the Budbud police station OC. “Investigators are examining the alleged flow of funds and the role of various individuals,” he said.