Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. file | Photo Credit: PTI
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday issued summons to Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee in connection with a case registered by the agency in the West Bengal school job scam. The CBI had asked the Diamond Harbor MP to appear at the agency’s office in Kolkata on Saturday (May 20) at 11 am.
Responding to the summons, the Trinamool leader said he would “extend full cooperation during the investigation”. “I have received a summon from the CBI to appear before them for questioning tomorrow, May 20, 23. I will obey the summons even though I have not been given a day’s notice. I will extend my full cooperation during the investigation,” Mr Banerjee said on Twitter.
The Trinamool’s second-in-command, who was busy with the party’s outreach programme, said he would resume the program on May 22. I stop by today Without being deterred by these incidents, I will try to serve the people of West Bengal with more dedication, enthusiasm and commitment. Turn it on,” Mr Banerjee said. Later in the day, speaking at a public meeting in Bankura, he said that people would have to take to the streets not for him but for their rights, which included being denied 100 days of work.
The summons comes a day after the Calcutta High Court dismissed a petition filed by the Trinamool leader, seeking recall of the same court’s earlier order which had directed that investigative agencies like the CBI and ED Can interrogate him in the recruitment scam. Justice Amrita Sinha imposed a fine of ₹25 lakh on Mr. Banerjee and an equal amount on scam accused Kuntal Ghosh.
On Friday, lawyers representing the Trinamool general secretary approached a division bench of the high court seeking urgent hearing of the petition, but the court declined to entertain the matter urgently.
While Mr Banerjee has been issued summons by the CBI as well as the Enforcement Directorate in the coal theft scam, the Trinamool Congress leader’s name in the recruitment scam began last month, when one of the accused, Kuntal Ghosh, said he had received Mr Banerjee’s name by the agencies. Threatened to name. Kuntal Ghosh had also written a letter to the court and Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay had said in his order on 13 April that central agencies can interrogate accused Kuntal Ghosh along with Abhishek Banerjee.
This order was challenged in the Supreme Court by the lawyers representing Mr Banerjee. The Supreme Court on April 28 urged the then Acting Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, TS Sivagnanam, to refer two cases, Soumen Nandy v. State of West Bengal and Ramesh Malik v. State of West Bengal, to a separate bench. The matter was listed before Justice Amrita Sinha who declined to grant any relief to Mr. Banerjee.