Cattle Smuggling Case: Delhi HC Grants Bail to CA Manish Kothari

The Delhi High Court has granted bail to Manish Kothari, a Chartered Accountant believed to be closely associated with incarcerated TMC leader Anubrata Mondal in connection with the West Bengal cattle smuggling case.

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, while granting bail, emphasized that the allegation against Kothari does not involve activities beyond the scope of his profession as a chartered accountant.

The court acknowledged Kothari’s claim that he acted based on the information and records provided to him, and this assertion should be tested during the trial. It was noted that Kothari had served as Anubrata Mondal’s chartered accountant, and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleged that he played a role in presenting illicit funds as legitimate through the filing of income tax returns.

The single bench clarified that at the bail stage, it only needs to assess the preponderance of probability and is not required to make a definitive finding of acquittal. Such determinations are reserved for the trial court after a thorough examination of evidence.

It also acknowledged Kothari’s argument that Mondal may be shifting blame onto him to protect himself, emphasizing that this aspect should be scrutinized during the trial.

Previously, Kothari’s bail plea had been denied by the trial court, which found that he had actively aided co-accused in converting tainted money into legitimate funds and was involved in money laundering.

Kothari was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in March 2023 after nearly 10 hours of questioning at the ED headquarters.

Anubrata Mondal, the president of the Trinamool Congress party in Birbhum district and a close aide of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, had been arrested by the CBI in connection with the same case earlier.

The ED subsequently arrested Mondal in the alleged multi-crore cattle smuggling scam. He is also facing an ED probe related to money laundering in West Bengal’s cattle smuggling case.

Key individuals involved in the cattle smuggling case, such as Enamul Hoque and Saigal Hussain, Mondal’s bodyguard, are currently in Tihar jail.

Mondal was apprehended by the CBI on August 12 from his Bolpur residence after the central investigative agency implicated him directly in the cattle smuggling scam. His involvement emerged following the registration of an FIR by the CBI in 2020. The investigation revealed that over 20,000 cattle had been seized by the Border Security Force (BSF) between 2015 and 2017 while being smuggled across the border.