ED summons Abhishek Banerjee to appear before it on Nov 9

Kolkata: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee to appear before it here on November 9 in connection with the alleged school jobs scam, a TMC leader said on Wednesday.

Banerjee will appear before the ED on Thursday, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare Minister and TMC spokesperson Shashi Panja said, alleging that the party national general secretary is a victim of “vendetta politics”.

She also alleged that the BJP does such vendetta politics to “harass” leaders ahead of crucial election early next year.

State BJP spokesperson Shamik Lahiri said the party does not believe in vendetta politics. He stated that summoning by central agencies is happening under the supervision of the court, and if the TMC has any problem, it can approach the court.

The ED had earlier summoned Banerjee to appear before it on October 9, after he skipped the October 3 summons to participate in a TMC protest rally in New Delhi, demanding immediate release of central funds due to the state.

Banerjee, who was questioned by the ED for nearly nine hours in the teacher recruitment scam on September 13, had then claimed that the interrogation was an attempt to prevent him from participating in the ‘INDIA’ meet, and was a testament to the pivotal role the TMC plays in forging opposition unity.

The two-time TMC MP had also been questioned by the ED twice in the coal pilferage case, once in the agency’s office in the national capital in 2021 and again in Kolkata in 2022.