News Analysis India

Tag: Rujira Narula Banerjee

  • West Bengal teacher recruitment scam: Enforcement Directorate questions Abhishek’s wife

    By Express News Service

    KOLKATA: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) questioned Rujira Narula Banerjee, wife of chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, on Wednesday in connection with the alleged irregularities in recruitments in state-aided schools.

    It was the first time that the ED asked Rujira to appear for questioning in the teachers’ recruitment scam case. Earlier, she was interrogated in connection with money laundering related to coal pilferage.

    The ruling party of West Bengal described the central agency’s move as political harassment by the BJP due to vendetta.

    Rujira arrived at the ED’s office at around 10:45 a.m. After a marathon interrogation, she left the investigating agency’s Salt Lake office at around 4.20 p.m.

    The ED is investigating the possible involvement of Leaps and Bounds Private Limited, a company that has Abhishek as its CEO and Rujira as a former director, in the state’s primary school teacher recruitment scam.

    “We asked her to explain in detail about her knowledge about Leaps and Bounds and why she quit as the director of the company,” said an ED officer.

    Abhishek Banerjee, who was questioned by the ED for nearly nine hours in the teacher recruitment scam on September 13, had then claimed that the interrogation was an attempt to prevent him from participating in the opposition INDIA bloc’s meet and was a testament to the pivotal role the Trinamool Congress plays in forging opposition unity.

    The recruitment scam landed former education minister Partha Chatterjee and several TMC functionaries and officials of the state education department behind bars. Both the ED and the CBI are probing into the alleged irregularities following an order passed by the Calcutta High Court.

    In another development on Wednesday, the CBI pleaded to interrogate Chatterjee, who was produced before the court, in the jail saying it came across more evidence. While leaving the court, Chatterjee claimed his innocence in the recruitment scam.

    ALSO READ | ED issues fresh summons to TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee in Bengal school recruitment scam

    TMC minister Shashi Panja lambasted the BJP for using the central agencies politically.

    “Summoning Rujira by the ED is nothing other than political harassment. It is BJP’s political vendetta. The saffron camp failed to combat our party politically through elections and is now using the ED and the CBI to meet its political purpose. The people of Bengal realised it and they will give a befitting reply in the coming elections in Bengal,” she alleged.

    ALSO READ | Will defy ED summons, says Abhishek Banerjee even as HC removes officer in charge of probe into recruitment scam Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

    KOLKATA: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) questioned Rujira Narula Banerjee, wife of chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, on Wednesday in connection with the alleged irregularities in recruitments in state-aided schools.

    It was the first time that the ED asked Rujira to appear for questioning in the teachers’ recruitment scam case. Earlier, she was interrogated in connection with money laundering related to coal pilferage.

    The ruling party of West Bengal described the central agency’s move as political harassment by the BJP due to vendetta.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    Rujira arrived at the ED’s office at around 10:45 a.m. After a marathon interrogation, she left the investigating agency’s Salt Lake office at around 4.20 p.m.

    The ED is investigating the possible involvement of Leaps and Bounds Private Limited, a company that has Abhishek as its CEO and Rujira as a former director, in the state’s primary school teacher recruitment scam.

    “We asked her to explain in detail about her knowledge about Leaps and Bounds and why she quit as the director of the company,” said an ED officer.

    Abhishek Banerjee, who was questioned by the ED for nearly nine hours in the teacher recruitment scam on September 13, had then claimed that the interrogation was an attempt to prevent him from participating in the opposition INDIA bloc’s meet and was a testament to the pivotal role the Trinamool Congress plays in forging opposition unity.

    The recruitment scam landed former education minister Partha Chatterjee and several TMC functionaries and officials of the state education department behind bars. Both the ED and the CBI are probing into the alleged irregularities following an order passed by the Calcutta High Court.

    In another development on Wednesday, the CBI pleaded to interrogate Chatterjee, who was produced before the court, in the jail saying it came across more evidence. While leaving the court, Chatterjee claimed his innocence in the recruitment scam.

    ALSO READ | ED issues fresh summons to TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee in Bengal school recruitment scam

    TMC minister Shashi Panja lambasted the BJP for using the central agencies politically.

    “Summoning Rujira by the ED is nothing other than political harassment. It is BJP’s political vendetta. The saffron camp failed to combat our party politically through elections and is now using the ED and the CBI to meet its political purpose. The people of Bengal realised it and they will give a befitting reply in the coming elections in Bengal,” she alleged.

    ALSO READ | Will defy ED summons, says Abhishek Banerjee even as HC removes officer in charge of probe into recruitment scam Follow The New Indian Express channel on WhatsApp

  • ED quizzes Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee’s wife Rujira in coal pilferage scam

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday interrogated Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee’s wife Rujira Narula Banerjee at its Kolkata office for over six hours in connection with its probe into the coal pilferage scam, an officer said.

    The officer said that Rujira went to the ED office at the CGO complex at around 11 am carrying her two-and-a-half-year-old son in her arms. Four officers, including two women, questioned her.

    “We have questioned her about a few transactions made in a bank account in Bangkok. Her answers are being tallied with those given by people who were interrogated earlier in the same case. Rujira may be called again in a few days for another round of questioning,” he said when contacted.

    During the entire grilling session, Banerjee’s son remained on her lap, the officer said. “The child was crying every time her mother was putting him down from her lap,” he added. The Supreme Court has allowed ED to quiz Banerjee and his wife in the coal smuggling case in Kolkata by giving them an advance 24 hour notice.

    The ED had expressed apprehensions at the apex court citing past instances of violence against CBI officers, who were gheraoed in the city after three heavyweight TMC leaders were summoned by them in connection with another scam at its office.

    It had mailed to the state police seeking protection. Following it a huge police arrangement was made at the ED office here, a senior official of the force said. The investigation is linked to an FIR filed by CBI in 2020 in a multi-crore rupees pilferage scam.

    The CBI has so far questioned Rujira twice in connection with the scam. The central agency had last year also interrogated Rujira’s sister Menoka Gambhir, her husband and father-in-law in connection with the probe.

    It is alleged that illegal mining of coal was carried out at leasehold mines of Eastern Coalfields’ in Kunustoria and Kajora areas near Asansol in West Bengal. Investigations have hinted towards financial transactions of Rs 1,300 crore, the bulk of which went to several influential people as per CBI.

    The probe revealed that the money was deposited in foreign bank accounts of these influential people through hawala.