The goodwill shown during Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s state visit to India in early September, which produced seven bilateral agreements, risks unraveling due to large-scale illegal cattle smuggling across the shared border. The trade has grown into a major operation in recent years, reportedly benefiting the ruling party through alleged links with politicians, officials and Border Security Force personnel. It spans the districts of Malda, Birbhum and Murshidabad, engaging thousands of residents. The annual value runs into hundreds of crores, exceeding the scale of the recent alleged teachers’ recruitment controversy in the state. Revelations have emerged since the Central Bureau of Investigation began its probe in September 2020. Further details surfaced after the arrest of Anubrata Mondal, a Trinamool Congress leader from Birbhum accused of overseeing the smuggling network. The CBI action caused a temporary halt at the Sukhbazar animal market in Ilambazar, Birbhum’s largest livestock venue. Recent visits, however, showed renewed trading activity.
