Kolkata, The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday dismissed a revisional application filed by alleged illegal sand and stone trader Md Nazibuddin Mondal, better known as Tulu Mondal, against an arrest warrant, and proclamation as a fugitive by a lower court.
Police seized 5 kg of gold bars and over ₹ 28.53 crore in cash, amounting to a total of nearly ₹ 50 crore, from the residence of Mondal’s alleged associate at Mohammad Bazar in West Bengal’s Birbhum district. Dismissing the application, Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya noted that Mondal left India on May 23 and as such, there was no need to interfere with the orders of the lower court. A report filed by the police before the high court stated that cash amounting to over ₹ 28.53 crore and 5 kg of gold bars were seized from the residence of Mondal’s alleged associate, who is his relative, and subsequent recovery of massive physical and electronic documents was also made, revealing commission of organised crime. Mondal’s lawyer Siddharth Dave made submissions against the non-bailable warrant of arrest dated July 30 issued against him and the subsequent order of proclamation on August 10, which required him to appear before the trial court on September 14. Both the orders were passed by the additional chief judicial magistrate of Suri court on a criminal case registered at Mohammad Bazar police station in Birbhum district on July 30. The court noted that Mondal left the country on May 23, much before the criminal prosecution was initiated on July 30.
Holding that the court does not find fault in the issuance of an arrest warrant by the ACJM against Mondal since he left the country, Justice Bhattacharyya observed that this was done to facilitate the investigation.
