Saradha scam: Mamata's transport minister, MP summoned by CBI

Kolkata, Nov 19: The special crime branch of the Central Bureau of Investigation, probing the Saradha chit fund scam, has served summons on West Bengal Transport Minister Madan Mitra and Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Srinjoy Bose to appear before the agency for questioning.

A top CBI source told PTI that Mitra has been served summons by the agency and he has been asked to appear before the CBI officers within this week.

This is the first time that a state minister has been summoned by the CBI in connection with the Saradha scam.

The Saradha Group operated a Ponzi scheme offering massive returns of 40 per cent and more until it collapsed last year, leaving lakhs of small investors bankrupt in West Bengal and Odisha.

According to local media channels, Mitra said he was undergoing treatment and would not comment on the matter. Bose, on the other hand, said he would cooperate with the agencies as a responsible citizen of the country.

Another MP of the TMC, Kunal Ghosh, who is in jail for alleged involvement in the scam that surfaced earlier last year made the headlines for allegedly attempting suicide inside the jail premises by consuming sleeping pills. Ghosh had threatened to commit suicide earlier last week if the 'real' culprits' were not caught within 72 hours.

PTI