In the latest blow for Mamata Banerjee, Indian authorities have frozen three Trinamool Congress (TMC) bank accounts with deposits worth Rs 4.4 billion amid investigations into alleged money laundering.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said the HDFC Bank accounts were frozen under the anti-money laundering law on Wednesday, reports NDTV.

According to the economic intelligence agency, large-scale suspicious financial transactions were carried out from the party funds.

The ED is now probing the transactions after allegations of money laundering and misuse of funds surfaced. It will take further action based on the findings.

The party, however, did not make any immediate reaction.

This marks the latest setback for the party, which has been embroiled by rebellion since the last assembly election debacle.

The ED previously raided five locations in Delhi-NCR, a metropolitan expanse surrounding the Indian capital, as part of the investigation.

All the locations were allegedly linked to the Carewell Group of Companies, a Sydney-based conglomerate in the aviation sector.

Investigators said Rs 1.6 billion had been transferred from the accounts to Carewell Aviation India Private Limited and another company associated with it between April 2023 and June 2026.

After that, Carewell Aviation reportedly sent about Rs 0.82 billion to the accounts of a newly formed related company.

ED officials said Rs 1.12 billion had been spent to purchase Embraer Legacy 600 aircraft and Agusta 109 SP helicopter.

Some foreign funding was used to purchase an Agusta helicopter, while TMC financed the rest, they added.

The investigators are now looking for the source of the foreign funds and checking whether any rules were violated in the process.

The TMC took lease of the aircraft and spent “a huge amount of money” to use those, they said, describing the entire financial structure as “highly suspicious”, which they suspect may have been designed to “hide the real transactions and beneficiaries”.

On Jun 12, former TMC treasurer Aroop Biswas wrote to the manager of HDFC Bank in Kolkata for an immediate freeze on the operation of the accounts.

He referred to a dispute over the authority and control of the All India Trinamool Congress at that time.

The Deccan Herald citing a 2024-25 audit report said the party has assets worth Rs 10.81 billion.

Of that amount, Rs 6.25 billion is in bank accounts, Rs 2.50 billion is in investments and Rs 0.50 billion is in cheques.

Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani has stepped down as director of Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd, the conglomerate’s telecom arm said on Tuesday.

Reliance Jio said it has appointed Mukesh’s son and non-executive director Akash Ambani as the chairman of its board. Akash has been involved with the telecom unit since its launch in late 2016, where he started as a director.

India’s telecoms sector had been upended after the entry of Jio, which triggered a price war that forced some rivals out of the market and turned profits into losses.

Jio, which started out offering mobile teleservices, has been aggressively investing in services like internet broadband and forging ties with handset makers to launch low-cost smartphones and providing 5G services.

Inspired by the growing appetite of Indian culinarians in Dhaka, Amari Dhaka is going to serve the Great Indian Food Festival starting from March 25, 2022 and will be continuing till March 31, 2022. The exciting food festival aims at offering an unforgettable dining experience through an exquisite menu prepared by the Guest Chefs of India. The innovative food menu will be available across the dining outlet Amaya Food Gallery throughout the festival.

The sumptuous menu will feature different tawa and chat signature specialties such as tawa chilla, raj kachori, tawa tikki chaat, pao vaji, pani puri, papri chat, dabeli, mnissal pao, sev puri, tawa fish, tawa prones and main courses like: mutton tikka, keema kajeli, gurda kaporra, brain curry, mutton champ, mutton chapli kebab, mutton kima, rahara meat, baharra, saag meat, chicken tikka, mutton sheek kebab, chicken sheek kebab, chicken chapali kebab, chicken kima, narjasi Kofta, bhatti da murg, baher masalam. The mouthwatering deserts is going to tempt your taste buds with some amazing spreads – mawa chamcham, tawa sandesh, baked boondi, rajvogh, amrit ras, baked chamcham, malai chamcham, different verities of sandesh, anguri rasmalai, rasmadhuri and what not. The ambiance of the restaurant will reflect the colourful spirit of Indian culture. The spices and masalas mingled to create a delectable Indian’s essence throughout the festival. The food festival will witness a traditional showcase of delicacies with an elaborate menu celebrating the captivating aromatic curries, tawa specialties, chaats, flavorful biryanis, and special mithai crafted with love by the guest chefs who brings alive timeless authentic essence from the homeland. 

The price of the festival buffet is BDT 7000 NET per person, bogo will be available for selective bank cards.

This unique food festival will provide a plethora of traditional Indian dishes which are made under very hygienic conditions and presented in Indian signature style and promises an unmatched experience of delving into the gastronomic Indian delights.