School jobs scam: ED seizes Rs 30 crore cash, 5kg gold from Arpita Mukherjee’s apartment

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) started search on Thursday afternoon in several apartments, including Rathtala in South Kolkata and Chinar Park in the eastern fringes of Kolkata, after night-long counting of cash by the agency at a posh Belghoria apartment in North Kolkata from the arrested Trinamool Minister Partha Chatterjee's close aide Arpita Mukherjee’s apartment at Belghoria in Kolkata.

The agency has seized "reportedly" around Rs. 30 crores, gold worth more than 5kgs, innumerable silver coins and land deeds till 5:30am this morning, which were transported out of the apartment in 20 trunks in a truck. Earlier, around Rs 21.90 crore was recovered along with huge gold ornaments foreign currency from Arpita Mukherjee’s Haridebpur South Kolkata apartment on last Saturday. In two raids, in Belghoria and Haridebpur, ED has recovered more than Rs 50 crore cash, apart from gold ornaments, silver coins, foreign currencies and so on.

Ankit Kumar Chowrashia, secretary of the Belghoria Club Town apartment, “We were present at the apartment during cash counting. Huge amount of cash, around Rs 30 crore, a huge amount of gold ornaments and diamonds and many other things have been recovered from the apartment.” Chowrashia was present at the apartment during cash counting and recovery.


The ED officials today reached the Chinar Park flat of arrested Mukherjee along with Central Force personnel in the afternoon. The process underway to open the locked flat to begin search operations.

Multiple apartments, at least 13, have also been “reportedly” traced in Nayabad area of the eastern fringes of Kolkata and .
According to sources in ED, Mukherjee has told ED officials that she did not have access to the room in the apartment at Belghoria, where cash was recovered, and the cash belonged to Chatterjee, which was kept by Chatterjee's men inside the room.

It is also learnt Mukherjee has broken down during interrogation and was seen crying inside her lock up.

Meanwhile, Sukanta Acharjee, Personal Secretary of former Education Minister Partha Chatterjee, has been called for interrogation.

“We were not aquainted with Partha Chatterjee with whom this kind of recoveries could be linked. It is very unfortunate,” Trinamool Minister and Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim said.