Kolkata, 14 July (H.S.): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has widened its investigation into the alleged municipal recruitment scam in West Bengal by summoning the wife and two sons of Trinamool Congress MLA Madan Mitra for questioning next week.
The three have been asked to appear before the ED at its CGO Complex office in Salt Lake on July 22 and 23. Neither Madan Mitra nor any member of his family has reacted to the development so far.
Sources said the summons were issued following information allegedly obtained during the interrogation of former West Bengal minister Sujit Bose, who was arrested by the ED in connection with the same case.
The municipal recruitment scam pertains to allegations of illegal appointments in several municipalities across the state, where ineligible candidates were allegedly recruited in place of eligible applicants. Several influential political leaders and former ministers have come under the scanner in the investigation, with Madan Mitra's name also figuring in the probe.
The ED had earlier conducted searches at Mitra's residence and office and questioned him on multiple occasions. He had cooperated with the investigation each time.
Investigators now suspect that money allegedly generated through the recruitment scam may have been transferred to bank accounts belonging to members of Mitra's family.
The agency's suspicion has reportedly grown after its probe into Sujit Bose's financial transactions. According to ED sources, Bose allegedly transferred substantial funds to his wife's bank accounts to conceal assets disproportionate to his known income. The agency has recently filed a chargesheet against Bose in the case.
Based on those findings, the ED is now examining whether Madan Mitra also routed funds through the accounts of his wife and sons.
Mitra's wife, Archana Mitra, is a homemaker, while his sons, Swarup Mitra and Shubharup Mitra, are businessmen. His daughter-in-law Meghna Mitra is a councillor of the Kamarhati Municipality.
The ED is expected to examine the family's financial transactions as part of its ongoing investigation into the alleged recruitment scam.
---------------
Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
