New Delhi: Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Abhishek Banerjee was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at its office here for about eight hours Monday in a money laundering case linked to an alleged coal scam in West Bengal. The 34-year-old TMC national general secretary entered the office of the central probe agency in central Delhi around 11.00am and left shortly before 8.00pm. Abhishek Banerjee was accompanied by his security personnel and legal team.
Officials said Banerjee’s statement was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). He was confronted with some ‘evidences’ gathered by the investigators. His role and links with other accused in the case is being investigated, ED officials said.
Abhishek is the nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. He told reporters while exiting the ED office that he is a ‘law abiding citizen and hence he has cooperated in the investigation’. Abhishek alleged that probe agencies such as the ED, CBI and the income tax department were being used by the BJP to ‘scare opposition and its successful political personalities’.
“I am sure the way investigating agencies have been functioning under BJP’s dictatorship it can’t be more brazen…,” Abhishek said. “If they think they will put investigative agencies to scare me, to put me on the back foot to make sure that I stay away from political fray and do not question them on their wrongdoings, they are living in a fool’s paradise,” added the top TMC leader.
Abhishek added that his wife Rujira, summoned for questioning in this case Tuesday, will ‘not be coming’ as she has to take care of their two-and-half-year-old kid. She will send her reply to the investigating officer through email. However, the ED can question her in Kolkata and she is ‘willing to do that’, informed Abhishek.
The Diamond Harbour MP has been earlier questioned in this case by the agency in September last year for about nine hours.
The latest ED summons against the two came after the Delhi High Court dismissed March 11 a plea by the couple challenging the agency notices asking them to appear in the national capital instead of Kolkata. Abhishek informed that he has filed Monday a special leave petition (SLP) before the Supreme Court challenging these ED summons to appear in Delhi.
The agency lodged the case under the PMLA based on a November 2020 FIR registered by the CBI that alleged a multi-crore coal pilferage scam related to Eastern Coalfields Limited mines in West Bengal’s Kunustoria and Kajora areas in and around Asansol.
Local coal operator Anup Majhi alias Lala is alleged to be the prime suspect in the case.