KOLKATA: Sticking to the conspiracy theory behind his arrest in connection with the recruitment scam in schools, former member of Mamata Banerjee’s cabinet and suspended Trinamool Congress heavyweight Partha Chatterjee on Sunday said time would say who hatched the conspiracy.
While being taken for medical check-up at ESI Hospital, Joka, and asked who hatched the conspiracy, Chatterjee said, "You will come to know with time.’’
Asked whether the cash Rs 49.8 recovered from his close aide Arpita Mukherjee’s two apartments was his money, Chatterjee said, "I don’t have any money".
As he deboarded a vehicle after being taken to ESI Hospital at Joka for a medical check-up, and was approached by reporters with questions regarding the scam, Chatterjee said, "The money (recovered) is not mine."
Chatterjee had on Friday asserted that he was a victim of a conspiracy and expressed unhappiness over the Trinamool Congress' decision to suspend him. "This decision (to suspend me) could influence an impartial probe," he had said.
About the move to remove him from the ministry, Chatterjee, once considered a close confidante of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, said, "Her (Banerjee's) decision is right."
Chatterjee, 69, was relieved of his duties as minister-in-charge of various departments and suspended from the TMC on Thursday.
Both Chatterjee and Arpita, arrested in connection with the alleged recruitment scam, were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and were taken to the hospital for medical examination.
During the course of the investigation, the ED officials found Rs 8 crore deposited in eight bank accounts which were frozen on Saturday. The Central agency said the money is suspected to be proceeds of crime of the recruitment scam.
The central agency is going through the balance sheets of at least four companies that have links with Arpita and have decided to summon some of the directors to find out if these served as shell companies to park proceeds of crime.
The four companies whose financial statements are under ED’s scanner include Zamira Sunshines Limited, Echhay Entertainment Private Limited, Symbiosis Merchants Private Limited and Sentry Engineering Private Limited.
"Among the four companies, Zamira is the newest which was incorporated on March 20, 2017. One of Arpita’s flats in Belgharia, from where cash Rs 27.9 crore was recovered, is the registered address for the company which has interests in real estate activities,’’ said an ED official.
Sources in the central agency said among the four directors of Zamira is Debasish Debnath who used to work as a peon.
"Similarly, Kalyan Dhar, whose name features as one of the directors of the three other companies is Arpita’s brother-in-law and used to work as a driver,’’ said the official.
"We would like to know from Arpita about the exact roles of the directors of these companies that have links with her, their volume and extent of business and how the salaries of the staffs were funded,’’ the official added.
Over two sessions of interrogation on Sunday, Arpita was evasive about her sources of income and pleaded ignorance about most of the questions about the four companies and their statements of accounts, said ED sources.
"The model and actor already washed her hands off when she was asked about the huge volume of cash recovered from her two apartments. She said Chatterjee’s men used to come and keep the money and she had no access to the rooms where the cash was stashed. Since we found her relative’s name in the list of directors of one of the companies, she cannot plead ignorance,’’ said another ED official.
ED sources also said that Chatterjee refused to admit that the money was sent by him and claimed to be innocent.
Meanwhile, The TMC leadership has taken exception to his comments, contending that Chatterjee was himself responsible for his fate.
"Why was he silent for the last few days after his arrest? He has every right to approach the court and prove his innocence. The party has nothing to do with this scam," TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh had said on Thursday.
The CBI, as directed by Calcutta High Court, is probing the alleged irregularities 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.
The ED is looking into the money trail involved in the scam.
(With PTI inputs)