West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday visited the residence of her nephew and Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, ahead of a CBI visit to the same place. Abhishek's wife, Rujira, is expected to answer the CBI's queries today in connection with the coal scam case.
Her visit was brief, and was followed almost immediately by the arrival of the CBI. Presently the Central investigative body is at Banerjee's residence in south Kolkata's Harish Mukherjee Road. Their visit comes after his wife responded to a notice sent by the agency, stating that she would be available for questioning between 11 am and 3 pm on February 23.
While BJP leaders have insisted that there is no political motivation behind the recent spate of corruption investigations on people associated with the ruling Trinamool Congress, many allege foul play.
"Investigation agencies summons people based on the evidence they gathered. Trying to find a political agenda in this is wrong. I agree that elections are around the corner, but because of the elections, the investigation should not be stopped. The scam should be unearthed and culprits should be punished," said BJP leader Dilip Ghosh recently.
Rujira Banerjee however is no stranger to controversy. A Thai national and holds an Overseas Citizen of India card, she she has also been served notice by the Union Home Ministry in 2019 over "discrepancies" in her PIO card and other documents.
According to CBI sources, the agency wants to investigate the allegations that some transactions were made in her bank accounts from main accused Anul Majhi alias Lala, who has been named in the CBI case.
(With inputs from agencies)
