CBI begins questioning Abhishek Banerjee in Bengal school recruitment scam

Kolkata (IANS) | The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday began questioning Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee in the West Bengal school recruitment scam. Banerjee reached the Nizam Palace office of the Central Investigation Agency at 10.55 am and the questioning began at 11.20 am.

Sources said a three-member team of CBI’s Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) is questioning him. The team comprises one Superintendent, Deputy Superintendent and Inspector each.

The main inquiry being conducted by the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent, the Inspector will be primarily responsible for noting down the proceedings.

Sources said the CBI team started the investigation with a five-page questionnaire, prepared by the CBI based on the statements of scam accused and expelled Youth Trinamool Congress leader Kuntal Ghosh.

Banerjee’s name cropped up in the case after Ghosh wrote to a local police station and a special CBI court judge alleging that central agencies were pressurizing her to name the party general secretary in the case.

Meanwhile, Banerjee’s lawyers on Thursday filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court challenging the decision of a single-judge bench of Calcutta High Court Justice Amrita Sinha allowing central agencies to interrogate her.

On Saturday morning, Banerjee herself wrote a letter to the CBI informing it about the special leave petition in the apex court.

Passing the order on Thursday, Justice Sinha also imposed a fine of Rs 25 lakh each on Banerjee and Ghosh for wasting the court’s time.

Banerjee’s counsel, on Friday morning, approached the two benches of the high court challenging the order of the single judge bench and also appealed for a fast-track hearing in the matter.

However, both the Benches dismissed the petition.

After this the CBI summons came.

–IANS