The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday morning conducted raids at the residences of West Bengal Fire and Emergency Services Minister Sujit Bose and TMC MLA Tapas Roy in connection with the civic body job scam.
The raids were conducted at the residence of Bose in the Lake Town area in North 24 Parganas district early Friday morning. The central forces accompanied the ED officials and were equipped with extra protection gear like helmets, and automatic guns, considering the assault on them last week during the raid at Sandeshkhali.
The central agency officers also raided Tapas Roy's BB Ganguly Street residence and Chakraborty's residence in Birati
The ED probe is in connection with the irregularities in recruitment in civic bodies.
The ED officials blamed that they had faced resistance in entering Bose's residence and could enter only after 40 minutes. "We are carrying a search warrant and despite showing that we were initially not allowed to enter," the officer said.
The TMC denounced the coordinated searches at the homes of several party leaders, for their alleged involvement in irregularities in municipal recruitment in West Bengal, characterising it as "vendetta politics and a desperate manoeuvre" by the BJP to create a narrative ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
Senior TMC leader Kunal Ghosh asserted, "This is an attempt to divert the public and media's attention from various burning issues. The BJP appears to be sensing growing public discontent, and they are using every means at their disposal to change the narrative. This is a clear example of vendetta politics."
Trinamool Congress leader and West Bengal Industry minister Shashi Panja hit out at the central government alleging that the central probe agencies were used as a tool to harass leaders of opposition parties.
"It's crystal clear that the central government is using the central investigating agencies as a tool to harass opposition leaders," she said.
However, the West Bengal BJP dismissed the allegations as baseless. BJP leader Rahul Sinha stated, "Whenever the ED or CBI raid TMC leaders, they cry foul and accuse it of being politically motivated. Yet, the reality is that the TMC is deeply mired in corruption, with nearly every leader facing corruption allegations."
BJP MP Dilip Ghosh also reacted to the ED's raids at the houses of the state minister and TMC leaders and said that it was just the onset of 'Khela Hobe'.
"We have been hearing about 'Khela Hobe' (the game is on). The real 'Khela Hobe' has started now. Those who have been playing will not be spared," Ghosh said.
(With PTI inputs)
