WBSSC scam: Four missing vehicles of Arpita Mukherjee under ED scanner
Darpan News Desk IANS, 29 Jul, 2022 03:02 PM
Kolkata, July 29 (IANS) Enforcement Directorate (ED) sleuths, probing the multi- crore West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment irregularities scam, are now currently hunting for four missing vehicles from the Diamond City residence of Arpita Mukherjee in South Kolkata's Tollygunge.
The central agency sleuths recovered huge treasures for the first time on July 22 from the Tollygunge residence.
According to the ED sleuths, five parking slots were reserved for Arpita Mukherjee at the Diamond City complex. And as per records five high-end vehicles, which include two Mercedes Benz vehicles, one Honda City, one Honda CR-V and Audi A4, were parked there till July 22 evening when the Central agency sleuths started raiding her flat in this housing complex.
However, ED sources confirmed that by the time they concluded the search and seizure operations on July 23 early morning, four of the five vehicles went missing. "We have been able to trace just one white- colour Mercedes Benz vehicle, which we have confiscated. We are trying to track the remaining four vehicles and checking the CCTV footage in the housing complex within the period when these vehicles went missing," confirmed a central agency official.
The ED sleuths do not rule out the existence of cash, gold or other crucial documents in the missing four vehicles. It is learnt that out of the four vehicles Arpita Mukherjee used the two Mercedes Benz vehicles and the remaining three vehicles were used for other purposes.
Meanwhile, expressing surprise over the missing vehicles, BJP's national vice president and party MP Dilip Ghosh said that surely there was negligence on the part of the ED officials that led to such a development. "The central agency officials should be careful when they are handling such sensitive cases," he said.
Meanwhile, both Partha Chatterjee and Arpita Mukherjee were presented at the ESI Hospital in Joka in the southern outskirts of Kolkata on Friday afternoon for medical examinations. The reactions from the two were totally different.
Arpita Mukherjee broke down into tears while coming down from the ED vehicle, Partha Chatterjee said just one line to the media, that he is a "victim of conspiracy".
Ridiculing Chatterjee's one liner, state Trinamool Congress general secretary and party spokesman, Kunal Ghosh said that in such cases the natural reaction would have been -- "I am innocent".
"However, if ParthaChatterjee really thinks that he is a victim of conspiracy, he should prove that in the court," Ghosh said.
Harjot's brother Prabhjot Singh, who resides in Delhi's Chhattarpur, told IANS: "The last conversation I had with Harjot was on February 26 at 9 p.m. I haven't spoken to him since then. On March 2, at night, he contacted the family and informed them about his injuries.
While directing officials to ensure safe return of the remaining students and other persons stuck in Ukraine, he said the state government is sparing no effort to help the distressed families in this hour of crisis.
Over 700 Indian students are stuck in Sumy and they are running out of basic necessities like food and water and they have been urging the Indian government to get them evacuated from there.
Over 7,400 Indian nationals are expected to be evacuated under the 'Operation Ganga' in the next two days, the government said on Thursday. The Centre has initiated an airlift operation to evacuate Indians, who have found their way to the neighbouring countries of war-torn Ukraine.
This advisory, prepared by the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, warns about aerial raids, missile attacks, artillery shelling, small arms and gunfire, grenade explosions and 'Molotov cocktails', including by local people/militia.
The flight IX-1202 with 183 passengers, including an infant, arrived at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport at around 5.40 a.m. The evacuees were received by Union Minister of State for Railways Raosaheb Danve-Patil with flowers and words of solace as they trooped out lugging their belongings.
