Kolkata, Feb 8 (IANS): Sleuths of Income Tax department are conducting raids at different offices of Pataka Group, popular as the manufacturer of biri (hand-rolled smoking sticks) in Murshidabad and Kolkata since Wednesday morning.

Two teams of the department, escorted by central armed forces personnel, reached the biri factories of the Pataka Group at Samserganj and Suti both in Murshidabad district.

Around the same time, a third team reached the corporate office of Pataka Group at Free School Street in central Kolkata. Thereafter, the central armed forces personnel blocked the entry and exit points of these units of the group, after which the Income Tax sleuths started raids and search operations.

Last month, the Income Tax sleuths conducted marathon raid and search operations at the residence, biri factory and rice mill of of Jakir Hossain, the Trinamool Congress legislator from Jangipur constituency in Murshidabad district of West Bengal and recovered Rs 11 crore from there. Besides the huge cash, the Income Tax department had also seized several paper and electronic documents from the places that they raided.

The development had led to a political slugfest with Trinamool Congress leaders claiming that that the central agencies are deliberately "targeting" its leaders.

On the other hand, the state BJP leaders had claimed that unaccounted cash recovery from the residence of Trinamool Congress leaders in West Bengal is not a new feature.