West Bengal SSC scam: Arpita Mukherjee denies involvement, says ‘money kept without my knowledge’

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently arrested Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee and his close aide Arpita Mukherjee in relation to the SSC school jobs scam in the state, after hoards of cash were seized from the residence of the latter.

After being questioned for several hours, both Mukherjee and Chatterjee refused to claim the cash pile of Rs 50 crores, which was recovered from the residences of the actress during the raids conducted by the central agency.

Chatterjee's close aide Arpita Mukherjee, who has also been held by the ED in the school recruitment scam, said on Tuesday that crores of rupees recovered by the agency were slipped into her residences without her knowledge, as per PTI reports.

ED sleuths have recovered around Rs 50 crore in cash, along with jewellery, from her two flats in southwest Kolkata and Belghoria. Both Chatterjee and Mukherjee were taken to ESI Joka, on the southern outskirts of the city, for medical check-ups, during the day.

Mukerjee, after deboarding a vehicle, told waiting reporters, “Money was kept in my residences without my knowledge”, sparking speculation as to who was she pointing fingers at.

Earlier, Chatterjee, who has been relieved of his ministerial duties, had said that he was a “victim of a conspiracy” and expressed displeasure over the TM's decision to suspend him. The veteran leader had also said that only time would tell if the action against him was justified.

Both Chatterjee and Mukherjee have said that the money recovered did not belong to them. They will be produced before PMLA court on Wednesday, with the 10-day ED custody of the duo coming to an end.

Earlier, Mukherjee had reiterated that the crores of rupees and gold recovered from her flat did not belong to her and that Partha Chatterjee’s men used to visit her residence to store the money. She had also claimed that she was “not allowed” to enter the room where the money was stored.

(With PTI inputs)

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