KOLKATA: Seeking custodial interrogation of Partha Chatterjee, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday described the former Trinamool Congress minister as the mastermind in the alleged school recruitment scam.
The central agency arrested the former member of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s cabinet on Friday and sought his custodial interrogation. The court remanded Chatterjee to CBI’s custody till September 21.
In its submission before the magistrate of a special court in Alipore, the CBI said over 400 unfit candidates were given jobs while the more qualified ones were deprived.
“He (Chatterjee) is the mastermind of the scam. There was a nexus involving high-level officers of the education department. There are many other top-level officers involved in the recruitment scam which was masterminded by Chatterjee,’’ the CBI lawyer said.
On Thursday, the CBI, which is probing the irregularities in the recruitment of teachers and non-teaching staff through the School Service Commission, arrested the former chairman of the Board of Secondary Education, Kalyanmoy Ganguly, in connection with the scam.
Chatterjee was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in July. Following the arrest, Rs 49.8 crore in cash was recovered from the apartments of his close aide Arpita. Chatterjee was taken to the CBI’s Nizam Palace office from the court.
“We need to examine him thoroughly and cross-check with him the statements of Ganguly,’’ said an officer.
TMC STRONGMAN’S DAUGHTER QUESTIONED
KOLKATA: In the alleged cattle smuggling case, a CBI team visited arrested TMC strongman Anubrata Mondal home on Friday and interrogated his daughter Sukanya.
“We interrogated Sukanya as she is the stakeholder of a rice mill which is suspected to be the proceeds of the alleged cattle smuggling. She however failed to come with satisfactory answers,’’ said a CBI officer