Top supplier nabbed, Oppn stage protest
KOLKATA: A key dealer in a racket supplying meat from discarded animal carcass to restaurants in Kolkata was arrested on Thursday even as Opposition parties staged demonstrations demanding a thorough investigation.
Biswanath Ghorui was arrested from Sonarpur in South 24 Parganas on Wednesday night, taking the total number of arrests in the case to 11, police said.
The masterminds of the racket are yet to be traced.
Ghorui, along with Sunny Mullick, who was picked up from Bihar about a week ago, allegedly used to supply meat from carcasses thrown at dump yards to the city’s hotels and restaurants.
The racket, active in Budge Budge , was busted on April 20. Eleven people, including Manik Mukherjee, a former CPI(M) leader who was expelled in 2010 by the party, have been arrested.
In separates protests, BJP and Congress leaders on Thursday blocked roads outside the Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s office on SN Banerjee Road.
The BJP demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation, alleging the special investigation team formed by the police was not conducting a proper probe. “The SIT will follow orders from Trinamool leaders. People will never come to know the truth,” alleged Raju Banerjee, Bengal BJP general secretary.
Noted environmental activist Subhas Dutta filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Calcutta high court, seeking directions to the government to ensure public safety and proper standards of food sold in markets and eateries.
Earlier, Citizens For Social Justice, an NGO, submitted a notice in the high court for a PIL.
On Thursday, Atin Ghosh, member, mayor-in-council, KMC, visited several eateries and collected food samples.
“Since we don’t have adequate infrastructure, these samples will be sent to the state forensic science labs,” Ghosh said.