Kolkata, 07 October (H.S.) : Former West Bengal minister Indranil Sen appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday for a second round of questioning in connection with an alleged financial irregularities scam involving passes for UNESCO-recognized Durga Puja 'preview shows'.

Sen arrived at the central probe agency’s Salt Lake office at the CGO Complex around 11:30 AM carrying financial records covering a decade of banking transactions. His appearance follows an intensive nine-hour interrogation conducted by investigators on September 30.

According to agency sources, substantial sums were illicitly collected over a three-year span starting in 2022 under the pretext of distributing Durga Puja passes. The ED estimates the total magnitude of the scam at approximately Rs 140 crore. Investigators allege that Sen bypassed official government tendering protocols to award contracts worth roughly Rs 85 crore to firms linked to his close associates.

The agency's probe has also flagged questionable cash transactions, claiming that over Rs 3.8 crore in cash was deposited into the accounts of Octave Records, an entity owned by Sen. Investigators further alleged that Rs 30 lakh was transferred from this corporate account into the account of former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, stating that key documentation has been recovered to corroborate these money trails. The ED had earlier executed search operations across roughly 15 premises tied to the former minister, including his residential and commercial properties.

Official sources indicated that Sen was summoned afresh after multiple discrepancies emerged in his explanations during the initial questioning session, where he was confronted with paper and electronic evidence. The former minister was directed to present comprehensive banking statements from the past 10 years to reconcile these inconsistencies.

Sen declined to take questions from reporters while entering the ED headquarters and remained silent as he proceeded inside for interrogation.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh