E-Paper
‘I say what I observed’: Bengal BJP leader Dilip Ghosh on CBI-TMC nexus remark
Dilip Ghosh, the former president of the BJP Bengal unit, on Sunday said the Centre was compelled to order a parallel probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in several cases because CBI was not taking any action
Kolkata: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) vice-president Dilip caused embarrassment for his fellow leaders on Sunday and Monday by questioning the role of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Bengal and even alleging a nexus between a section of the federal agency’s officers and leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Ghosh, the former president of the BJP Bengal unit, said the Centre was compelled to order a parallel probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in several cases because CBI was not taking any action.
“It appears that there is an understanding between some CBI officers and the accused. All people have demands. Some may be sold for a few thousand rupees while some may demand a crore. On seeing that no action was being taken, the Centre deployed ED to crack these cases,” Ghosh said at an event on Sunday, referring to multiple cases in which a number of prominent TMC leaders are suspects.
Hours after his comments triggered a controversy, Ghosh questioned the CBI’s role in the post-poll violence cases as well.
“Around 60 of our workers have been killed since last year. What has the CBI done? I say what I observe,” Ghosh, who is known for making controversial statements, said on Monday.
The Calcutta high court ordered CBI probe into the killings and violence that followed the assembly polls last year.
CBI is also probing the Saradha chit fund case, the Narada case, the coal and cattle smuggling cases as well as the bribe-for-job scam into which the high court ordered an inquiry.
TMC’s Birbhum district unit president Anubrata Mondal was arrested by CBI on August 11 in the cattle smuggling case. Former education minister Partha Chatterjee and his aide Arpita Mukherjee were arrested on July 23 by ED in the bribe-for-job scam.
Amid reports that the BJP central leadership sought an explanation from Ghosh, the party’s Bengal president Sukanta Majumdar said: “The party has authorized me to speak on behalf of the state unit. I cannot comment on what Ghosh said.”
TMC takes a swipe
“It seems Gosh and Majumdar have different views on CBI. But it hardly matters because both exist only on social media. You will not find them anywhere if the Internet crashes,” said TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh.
