Kolkata: Starting March 1 till date, pre-poll seizures of unaccounted cash, smuggled gold, illegal liquor consignments, and banned narcotics by different state and central agencies in West Bengal stand at around Rs 150 crore, according to the data available with the office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO).
Sources in the CEO’s office said that the total unaccounted cash seized before ‘distribution’ so far stood at around Rs 8 crore, while an additional Rs 24 crore has been seized at the time of or after distribution.
“A record amount of smuggled precious metals, mainly gold, has also been recovered whose estimated market value is around Rs 28 crore,” a source said.
During the same period, 12,70 lakh litres of illegal liquor were also recovered by the central agencies whose estimated market value is Rs 34 crore.
“Other items worth over Rs 44 crore, including narcotics and expensive gifts without backing documents, have also been seized by the different state and central agencies during the period under review,” the sources said.
The maximum recovery of such items, said the sources, was made from the six Lok Sabha constituencies declared as “financially sensitive” by the Election Commission of India.
–IANS