On July 10, Bhagaban Das, a BJP MLA representing Pabiachhara rejected the claim of an ongoing investigation regarding allegations of corruption linked to the land acquisition of Notingcherra tea garden in Unakoti district.

This statement was made following Tripura Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha’s announcement in the Assembly that the Crime Branch Unit (Economic Offences) of Tripura police has launched an inquiry into the said allegations.

During an Assembly session, the Chief Minister responded to a query from Congress MLA Birajit Sinha regarding the land acquisition of the tea estate for national highways.

BJP MLA Das held a press conference on July 11 and claimed that the opposition had conspired against him to malign his name.

The MLA, denying any knowledge of an ongoing investigation, stated that during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, a delegation of tea workers from Notingcherra tea garden on May 24, 2021 informed him that they had not received wages for two weeks.

MLA Das further said that a person named Ranjan Sinha had written a letter to freeze the bank account from which the workers’ salaries were paid.

The MLA added that he was doubtful about the situation and discussed it with the then Additional District Magistrate (ADM), who confirmed that there were no valid reasons to halt the payments and acknowledged the letter requesting the account freeze.

The MLA further said, ” In response, I wrote to the ADM on May 27, 2021, seeking assistance in resolving the payment issue. An amount of approximately Rs 58 lakh for the National Highway project was debited on May 4, 2021, and gradually withdrawn, with the last withdrawal recorded on May 17, 2021, according to the bank statement.”

The MLA denied any involvement in a money laundering case related to land acquisition and explained that the NHIDCL transferred the Rs 58 lakh meant for land acquisition to the bank account of Sunshine Tea Processing Private Ltd, which managed the Notingcherra tea garden, and they subsequently withdrew the money.

The MLA claimed that he had no role in this incident and was unaware of it. He mentioned that in May 2021, he wrote to the ADM regarding wages, but the money was already been transferred to Sunshine Tea Processing Private Ltd’s account in March.

The MLA claimed that some local and foreign individuals were conspiring against him to malign his name.