Partha Chatterjee has defaced TMC over the period for which TMC immediately has suspend him and took away his ministerial portfolios.

Surprised by ED raids, Trinamool wakes up, assures justice to job aspirants

MUMBAI, KOLKATA, 30 JULY, 2022 (GPN): The Enforcement Directorate first raided on a property owned by Mukherjee in the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment scam case. Two more raids followed on other properties, leading to the seizure of around Rs 50 crore in cash along with gold bars and ornaments, documents and coded diaries.

She being an aide of sacked Trinamool Congress minister Partha Chatterjee, got arrest along with him.

69 yrs old Partha Chatterjee, who was the education minister of the state, was arrested by the ED in the cash for school jobs scam. Crores of rupees in cash were found at apartments of his aide, Mukherjee, besides gold believed to be in kilograms, documents of properties and foreign exchange were recovered by the ED, forcing the TMC to suspend him and take away his ministerial portfolios.

A flat on the 18th floor of a premium housing complex overlooking a golf course in south Kolkata’s Tollygunge is the canine version of a castle for several dogs of expensive breeds – pets of arrested former minister Partha Chatterjee and his “close aide” Arpita Mukherjee, an actor and film producer.

Mukherjee lived in another flat on the first floor. Before she was arrested by ED for a cash haul of over Rs 21 crore in her flat a week ago, she would go to the upper-floor kennel every day and take the dogs out for a walk. She had hired two labourer as caretakers for her pet’s who still have access to the flat.

Mukherjee’s’s chauffeur for the past seven months, Pranab Bhattacharya, said “madam” owned three flats at the complex, of which the one on the 18th floor was for the dogs.

Former tainted minister Chatterjee had more pet dogs at another flat in another housing complex near his Naktala home. The pets used to be brought often in a car to his residence. But these dogs were shifted to an unknown location within hours of Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay referring to his “flat for dogs in Naktala” while hearing one of the cases in the Bengal school jobs scam.

From Mukherjee`s passport, which is currently with the ED officials, it was found that during the last few years, she made trips to Bangladesh, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore and had frequently visited Nepal. This trips have evoked doubt’s in the minds of ED whether apart from pleasure and joyrides the probe can unfold a money laundering racket.

Noting that current custody of Chatterjee and Mukherjee after their arrest on 23rd July is till August 3, a source said: “Many of our queries are still unanswered. Although Arpita has started cooperating with us, the former minister is still in a non-cooperation mood. In all probability, we will have to make a plea for extension of their custody.”

The CBI, as directed by Calcutta High Court, is probing the alleged irregularities committed in the recruitment of Group-C and -D staff as well as teachers in government-sponsored and -aided schools on the recommendations of the West Bengal School Service Commission.

Sources said Bengal has earned a bad repute due to this school recruitment scam. Career of so many people have been destroyed due to the scam.

Two days earlier a doubtful theft happened at the garden Bungalow “Bishram” (Rest) which is registered in the name of Partha Chatterjee’s daughter Sohini Chatterjee, who is married and currently settled abroad.

The armed and masked thieves siphoned a truck load of valuables and article’s being watched by helpless locals.

The probe agency recovered overall more than 50 crores after another Rs 28 crore in cash and over 5 kg of gold was seized from her second apartment, days after recovering Rs 21 crore from her first flat, including several property papers and foreign exchange.The recovered Rs 27.9 crore includes notes of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 denominations, neatly packed in bundles of 50 lakh each for Rs 2,000 notes and Rs 20 lakh each for Rs 500 notes. Also, gold and jewellery worth Rs 4.31 crore include 3 gold bricks of 1 kg each, 6 Kangan (bangles) of 500 grams each, and a gold pen. All the money was kept stacked wrapped in plastic in leather bags and the black valuable assets in lockers and cupboards as found during the raids by IT Sleuths.

In the affidavit submitted by Partha to the Election Commission, the than leader of Trinamool, who contested from Behala West constituency in 2021, said the following under the oath of assets:

1 lakh 48 thousand 676 rupees in cash. At the same time, he has 24 lakh 81 thousand, 23 lakh 32 thousand 935, 15 lakh 1 thousand 161 and 1 lakh 8 thousand 69 in 4 branches of the two banks.

A life insurance policy of Rs. 25 lakhs in his name. Life insurance, bank deposits together with his savings of 90 lakh 94 thousand 863!

Parth had informed the Election Commission, he does not own a single car.

Although According to a news report, Arpita told the ED that the entire seized amount was kept in a room of her house, where only Chatterjee and his people were allowed to enter. Arpita said every week or once in 10 days, Chatterjee used to come to her house.She also told that Chatterjee himself never brought the amount. The money was brought by his assistants.Arpita told the agency that apart from her house, Chatterjee used another woman’s house as a “mini bank”. The other woman is also said to be a close friend of the minister.

The ED is looking into the money trail involved in the scam.