BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh on Wednesday claimed that tough times were ahead for the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal as party leader Anubrata Mondal, who was taken to Delhi by the ED in the cattle smuggling case, would start speaking the truth leading to the arrest of several TMC functionaries.

Hitting back, the TMC said that the people of West Bengal will soon ensure that the BJP faces a tough time.

Speaking to reporters, Ghosh said, "In the jails of West Bengal, he was getting all sorts of facilities, so he was not speaking out. Once he reaches the Tihar Jail, we are sure that he will start telling the truth. The queue to Tihar jail will then get longer. The TMC is all set for tough times ahead." BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said the TMC was scared that its top leaders would be behind bars if Mondal starts speaking.

"The entire TMC is petrified about what will happen if Anubrata Mondal starts speaking. If the truth comes out, several TMC leaders would be behind bars soon," he said.

The TMC said Mondal is yet to be proven guilty of the accusations.

"The allegations against him are yet to be proven. He is still an accused. Is Dilip Ghosh the judge, he is pronouncing someone guilty? Those who want the TMC to face tough times, they will themselves be in trouble in the days to come," state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said.

A Delhi court on Wednesday sent TMC leader Anubrata Mondal to ED custody till March 10 in an alleged money laundering case related to the cattle smuggling case.

The TMC has retained Mondal as its Birbhum district president despite his arrest in August last year.

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