Cattle smuggling case: ED summons actor-turned-Trinamool MP Dev to Delhi for questioning

Kolkata: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday summoned actor-turned-politician and Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha MP Dipak Adhikari alias Dev to the central agency’s headquarters in Delhi on February 21 for questioning in connection with a case related to money laundering, an ED official said.

Sources said the Trinamool MP has been summoned for questioning in connection with the multi-crore cattle smuggling case in West Bengal.

If Dev appears before the ED office, it will be the second time that the popular actor will be questioned by a central agency. In February 2022, he was questioned for five hours by the officers of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is conducting a parallel probe into the cattle smuggling case.

It was said that Dev was questioned for allegedly having links with Enamul Haque, a key accused in the cattle smuggling case.

Meanwhile, Trinamool spokesman Kunal Ghosh claimed that the notice to Dev is a reflection of the political vendetta of the Union government.

"Dev recently said that he will not surrender before the BJP under any circumstances. That is why he is being harassed with a fresh ED notice. He has become a victim of vendetta politics," Ghosh said.

In 2023, another actor-turned-politician and BJP legislator, Hiranmoy Chatterjee, a.k.a Hiran, had accused Dev of accepting an amount of Rs 5 crore from Enamul Haque, a charge that the Trinamool MP had denied.