School jobs scam: Don't support corruption, says Mamata after Bengal minister's arrest

NEW DELHI: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said she does not support corruption and if anyone is found guilty of wrongdoing, he must be punished, days after minister Partha Chatterjee was arrested in connection with school jobs scam.

"I don't support corruption or any wrongdoing. We have full faith in the judiciary. If anyone is proven guilty, then he or she must be punished. The party, too, will take action. But, I condemn the malicious campaign against me," Mamata said while addressing an award function in Kolkata.

"There has to be a time frame within which the truth and the court's verdict must be out. BJP is wrong if it thinks it can break my party using agencies," she added.


Mamata also denied any links with Partha Chatterjee's aide Arpita Mukherjee from whose house Rs 22 crore in cash was found.



"The party has no relation with that lady, neither do I know her. I attend several programmes, if someone gets clicked with me, is it my fault?" she said.


Meanwhile, ED demanded for 14 days' custody of Partha Chatterjee before a special court of the agency, pointing out that AIIMS-Bhubaneswar, after a check-up, has ruled out active health intervention.

The agency also pleaded for his “close associate” Arpita Mukherjee's custody for 13 days.

Special court judge Jibon Kumar Sadhu reserved its order.

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday arrested Trinamool Congress secretary general and senior minister Partha Chatterjee from his Naktala residence after nearly 20 hours of questioning on the school appointment scam during his tenure as the state education minister.

While being whisked away from his home amid tight security, Chatterjee told newspersons that he had “tried contacting” party chief and CM Mamata Banerjee “but couldn’t get in touch with her”.

While one ED team was taking Chatterjee through the routine post-arrest procedures, another team along with bank officials were counting heaps of currency notes stashed in wardrobes in the Diamond City South apartment of Chatterjee’s ‘close associate’, model-actor Arpita Mukherjee.

The Reserve Bank of India sent 20 trunks in a truck to the address to cart away the recovered notes and gold. The ED said it had recovered Rs 21. 9 crore in cash, gold worth Rs 74 lakh, foreign currency valued at Rs 54 lakh and property deeds of eight flats in and around Kolkata owned by Mukherjee.