Partha Chatterjee SSC Scam: Mamata Banerjee suspends Partha Chaterjee from TMC, removes from all party posts
Kolkata: Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee Thursday removed arrested leader Partha Chatterjee from all party posts while suspending him from the party.
Earlier today, the West Bengal Chief Minister also sacked Partha from all ministries.
Partha Chatterjee held the Commerce and Industry, Parliamentary Affairs, Information Technology and Electronics, and Public Enterprises and Industrial Reconstruction portfolios in the state Cabinet.
The teacher recruitment scam traces back to the time when he was the state's education minister.
Partha Chatterjee's arrest could bring other top TMC leaders, ministers and bureaucrats under the scanner of central agencies, according to sources, reported India Today.
Sources said Moloy Ghatak, Paresh Adhikary, Manik Bhattacharya, and Manish Jain are under the scanner of central agencies, according to India Today.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took the decision after a Cabinet meeting on Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Partha Chatterjee's personal secretary Sukanta Acharya has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate today, said media reports.
The ED on Wednesday recovered another Rs 28.90 crore in cash, over 5 kg of gold and several documents from the second apartment of Partha Chatterjee's aide.
The agency had earlier found Rs 21.90 crore in cash, Rs 56 lakh in foreign currency and gold worth Rs 76 lakh from his aide's house.
Addressing the media Thursday evening, TMC's National General Secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee said Trinamool is the only party to intervene against a party leader within seven days of his arrest. Attacking the BJP, he questioned why Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman wasn't sacked when bank frauds took place and fraudsters like Nirav Modi escaped the country.
TMC is the only party that intervened within 7 days in the matter. I agree huge sums of money were recovered. But, everyday bank frauds are happening what action did BJP take? Nirav Modi flew away, did BJP sack Nirmala Sitharaman, it's TMC who walk the talk: Abhishek Banerjee,TMC pic.twitter.com/aSKuD7Ayve
— ANI (@ANI) July 28, 2022
Abhishek Banerjee had called a meeting at 5 pm on Thursday after clamour to oust arrested teacher recruitment scam accused West Bengal Minister Partha Chatterjee grew.
On the direction of the Calcutta High Court, the CBI is investigating the alleged irregularities in the recruitment of Group-C and D staff as well as teachers in government-sponsored and aided schools on recommendations of the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC).
The ED is investigating the money trail in the scam.
