Partha Chatterjee, the secretary general of the Trinamool Congress, was interrogated by the Central Bureau of Investigation [CBI] officials on Friday. The inquiry was regarding financial assistance allegedly given to Trinamool mouth piece Jago Bangla , of which he is the editor. Mr. Chatterjee, a former management professional, is also the Education Minister of West Bengal.
“I was not questioned for any personal reasons but [for my association] with the party,” Mr. Chatterjee told reporters, following the three-hour interrogation. CBI sources said that Mr. Chatterjee’s name had surfaced during the CBI’s questioning of Trinamool Rajya Sabha MP and party spokesperson Derek O’Brien, who is the publisher of the mouthpiece, in connection with the probe into the Saradha scam.
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On Friday, the CBI also interrogated Rajeev Kumar, the former Police Commissioner of Kolkata regarding the multi-crore Rose Valley scam. Rose Valley would collect money from small investors, mainly in eastern and central India, and had amassed huge resources. However, the company hardly defaulted in payment and almost always paid their dues to the investors, unlike the Saradha firm. Mr. Kumar, who is now ADG [CID], was questioned for the first time by the CBI, although he has been interrogated by the Enforcement Directorate [ED] earlier.
Mr. Kumar has also filed a prayer before the Calcutta High Court seeking similar protection from any coercive action against him in connection with the Rose Valley scam. This plea is yet to be taken up for hearing.
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