TMC MP Abhishek appears before ED in connection with West Bengal school jobs scam

KOLKATA: Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee on Thursday appeared before the enforcement directorate for questioning in connection with its probe into the alleged school jobs scam in West Bengal, officials said.

Banerjee, the party's national general secretary, reached the ED office here around 11:10 AM, they said. The Diamond Harbour MP was summoned by the central agency after Banerjee skipped its October 3 summons to participate in a protest rally in New Delhi, demanding the immediate release of dues under the MGNREGA scheme to the state.

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An elaborate security arrangement has been made outside the ED office in Salt Lake area. The ED had on September 13 questioned Banerjee for nearly nine hours in the alleged school recruitment scam. The two-time TMC MP was 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.