India’s mega scam: Sleuths find £2m in cash at home of anti-Modi politician’s aide

• Shubham
• 23 July, 2022

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By: Shubham Ghosh

THE Trinamool Congress (TMC), one of the major challengers to Indian prime minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), received a major setback this week after investigative officers unearthed jewellery and cash worth millions from the residence of Arpita Mukherjee, an aide of one its top leaders Partha Chatterjee in Kolkata in the eastern state of West Bengal. A minimum of cash worth £2 million was discovered and the investigators roped in bank officials to count them to know the exact amount. The jewellery found were worth Rs 77 lakh (£80,301), India’s Republic news channel reported. More than 20 mobile phones were found.

The TMC has been in power in Bengal since 2011 with its supremo Mamata Banerjee serving as its chief minister.

Chatterjee, who is currently Bengal’s minister for industries and commerce, was the education minister when alleged illegal appointments were made in the state’s government schools by the West Bengal School Service Commission. The TMC tried to defend itself by saying the raids were a “ploy” by the Modi government or that the aide of Chatterjee was not its member.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), which quizzed Chatterjee for marathon hours this week, arrested Chatterjee in connection with the alleged recruitment scam. The ED was probing the money-laundering aspect in the case while the Central Bureau of Investigation was looking into the alleged irregularities in the recruitment of non-teaching staff and primary school teachers. The CBI had interrogated Chatterjee in April and May. He was even taken to custody, according to sources, as he was reportedly elusive about the origin of the cash.

The ED said in a statement, “The search team is taking the assistance of bank officials for the counting of cash through cash counting machines. A total of more than 20 mobile phones have also been recovered from the premises of Ms. Arpita Mukherjee, the purpose and use of which are being ascertained. Further, a number of other incriminating documents, records, details of dubious companies, electronic devices, foreign currency and gold has also been recovered from the various premises of the persons linked to the scam.”