Partha Alleges TMC Top Brass Knew About SSC Scam, Crores Taken Away For 'Party' Use: ED Officials

Bengal SSC Scam: According to ED officials, former Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee alleged that he was following "party diktat" and he was instructed to keep the money in "safe custody".

Partha Chatterjee reportedly admitted that he required a front to stash the cash that he allegedly held for the party. ( Image Source :PTI )

New Delhi: Former West Bengal minister and suspended Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee has apparently told interrogators that everybody in the party, including the top leadership, knew about the money collected from ineligible candidates to get them jobs as school teachers.

News agency IANS reported an investigator as saying that Partha Chatterjee has begun divulging details after losing his ministerial berths and being suspended from the ruling TMC.

Partha Claims He Was Just 'Custodian, Following 'Party Diktat': ED Officials

"He claims that he was just the custodian. He never asked for any money nor accepted any from candidates. There was a party diktat and he was following orders. He was supposed to sign documents prepared by others. The money was also collected by others and sent to him. He had been instructed to keep the money in safe custody. Hundreds of crores were later taken away for 'party' use. Only a fraction of the sum was confiscated. This is what he has revealed so far," an ED official said, as quoted by IANS.

As per the report, another official said: "Partha Chatterjee now claims that the party earned money by selling jobs in other departments as well. This culture goes back to the days before the Trinamool Congress came to power in West Bengal. People allegedly got railway jobs by paying money. He has also mentioned a certain office in Majerhat where these deals were struck. Partha Chatterjee claims that the party took so long to take a decision about his fate as other leaders were cleaning up their homes. Once this was over, they washed their hands off, leaving him to fend for himself."

Even with the alleged confessions, Partha Chatterjee as an accused will have to back whatever he says with corroborative evidence as mere knowledge being former secretary general of the party won't help.

Partha Chatterjee On Arpita Mukherjee

On Arpita Mukherjee, Partha Chatterjee has reportedly maintained that she is somebody he was trying to help build a career in modeling and films. He is said to have admitted that he required a front to stash the cash that he allegedly held for the party. In lieu of her 'services', certain concessions had to be granted, the report stated.

According to IANS, Partha Chatterjee has claimed that many other top leaders dropped by at properties purchased in Arpita Mukherjee's name, an allegation that will also have to be proved before a court of law.

Partha Chatterjee, a former senior leader of the Mamata Banerjee-led party, has been an MLA for over two decades. It is also said that he was among the Congress leaders in the early 90s who mentored Mamata. Having been a close associate of the late Subrata Mukherjee, Partha at the age of 70 is facing public humiliation as the situation pertaining to the SSC scam case unravels.

Hinting at a bigger picture, the ex-minister on Sunday said: "The money (recovered) is not mine.” On being asked who was conspiring against him, he said, "You will get to know when the time comes." 

(With IANS Inputs)