Kolkata: Amid a series of raids being conducted in the city by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the recruitment corruption case in the education sector, Trinamool Congress (TMC) questioned when the BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari will be summoned by the Central probe agency in connection with the Narada bribery case.
TMC national general Abhishek Banerjee shared footage of Narada sting operation on his social media handle which purportedly showed Suvendu Adhikari accepting a bribe. Abhishek wrote: “It’s my open challenge to the @dir_ed and @PMOIndia to take action against all FIR named accused in #NARADA starting with YOU! Also, attaching the video just so this visual evidence served as a resounding reminder of your inherent shamelessness, both in the past and eternally.”
This sparked a war of words between Abhishek and Suvendu on X, both of whom engaged in a virtual melee taking a shot at the other in turns. Referring to Suvendu, Abhishek wrote on X: “A person who, in a bid to protect themselves from CBI & ED resorted to using their own father and brother as bargaining chips, is hardly in a position to lecture others on the sanctity of family and relationships. BTW which political party do they belong to?”
TMC has long been demanding that Suvendu’s father, Sisir Adhikari, and brother Dibyendu clarify which party they belong to. In the run-up to the 2021 Assembly elections, both of them were seen sharing dais with BJP’s top rung leaders while at the same time they never officially resigned
from TMC.
In a rebuttal, Suvendu asked Abhishek on social media to which party the following politicians belong: Arjun Singh, Mukul Roy, Krishna Kalyani, Biswajit Das, Tanmoy Ghosh and Suman Kanjilal. He accused Abhishek of evading his questions.
Banerjee replied: “Happy to answer all your questions, why don’t you just choose a place and time. Will also come with the audio excerpts of your two telephonic communications with one of the alleged accused of coal scam regarding setting & settlement. Let me know if you are up for the challenge.”
Challenging Suvendu to accept the invitation for a debate with Abhishek, TMC MP Santanu Sen said: “Everyone has seen Suvendu Adhikari taking money on camera. His name is there in the CBI FIR. There are various allegations of corruption against him in issues involving Contai Cooperative Bank, Haldia Development Authority, and Kanthi Municipality. Saradha owner has submitted a document detailing how much money was taken by Adhikari. Even in the recruitment scam, the 55 people he recommended had their appointments cancelled by the courts. If Adhikari has the guts, he should accept the challenge posed by our National General Secretary.”