Kolkata: After Abhishek Banerjee and his wife Rujira were summoned by the Enforcement Directorate, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday came down heavily on the BJP-led Union government, accusing it of letting loose central agencies on her nephew and TMC national general secretary in the coal scam case.
She went on to claim that some BJP ministers were working hand-in-glove with the coal mafia, once again alleging that the Narendra Modi government was trying to "bulldoze the federal structure" of the country and snatch away the rights of the states, news agency PTI reported.
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The TMC supremo proposed to call a meeting of all chief ministers to fight against "the Centre's authoritarianism".
"The BJP and the Union government can't fight us politically. The party was defeated in the assembly polls and now they are using central agencies against our leaders like Abhishek Banerjee and others. But let me tell them, they can't bulldoze or intimidate us by such threats. We will continue our fight against them," Mamata Banerjee said, as quoted by PTI.
"If you (BJP) show us ED, we will also send proof against BJP leaders to the agency. A section of BJP ministers and leaders are working hand-in-glove with the coal mafia. They even stayed at hotels run by them during elections," she alleged.
The Enforcement Directorate has summoned TMC's Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee and his wife for questioning in a money laundering case linked to an alleged coal scam in the state.
Commenting on the development, TMC General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee said: "BJP thinks it can put pressure on us by using ED against us but we will emerge stronger", news agency ANI reported.
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'BJP Govt Is Inhuman & Is Selling The Country': Mamata Banerjee
The statements come as both CM Mamata Banerjee and MP Abhishek Banerjee were addressing a gathering on the occasion of TMC Chhatra Parishad Foundation Day in Kalighat.
"Why do we say Jai Hind, Vande Mataram and Khela Hobe.. We believe students are the ones who start moving forward with helpless people. They are the future. I want them to become a new equation of politics," she said.
"BJP is suppressing the voices of students, teachers, government employees and on social media. I want students of West Bengal to lead the path. BJP government is inhuman. This government doesn't love people and is selling the country," ANI reported CM Mamata Banerjee as alleging.
Speaking at the event, Abhishek Banerjee also challenged the saffron party saying: "TMC will go to all states where BJP killed democracy and snatched away the rights of people. We'll fight them till the last drop of our blood. They think if they scare us we'll sit down. But this is the land of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Swami Vivekanand, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa".
"When we fight, we have just two things in mind - either hoist the flag for which we're fighting or come back wrapped in the same. I challenge Amit Shah to stop TMC if he has courage, we'll snatch away from you all those states where we enter," he added.
The West Bengal Chief Minister also brought up the matter of post-poll violence, saying that 5 BJP workers and 16 TMC workers had died. "We have no problem with CBI, but why are they taking BJP leaders with them to villages? NHRC and all other commissions have become political, all their members are from BJP," she alleged.
ED Summons
While the MP from Diamond Harbour has been asked to appear before the agency in New Delhi on September 3, his wife Rujira Banerjee has been asked to appear before them on September 1. Both have been asked to appear before the investigative officers along with their bank details.
Few others linked to the case have also been summoned to appear on different dates next month, the officials said.
The case, filed under criminal sections of the (PMLA), was filed by the ED after studying a November 2020 FIR of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) that alleged a multi-crore coal pilferage scam related to the Eastern Coalfields Ltd mines in the state's Kunustoria and Kajora areas in and around Asansol.
(With inputs from agencies)