Kolkata: West Bengal Industry Minister Partha Chatterjee was arrested on Saturday by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the agency's investigation into the teacher recruitment scam, said an ED officer.

The TMC secretary general, who was the state education minister at the time of the scam, was arrested after about 26 hours of questioning in connection with the investigation. The ED also detained Chatterjee's close aide Arpita Mukherjee, from whose property Rs 21 crore in cash was recovered.
"Chatterjee had refused to cooperate with our officers who had been interviewing him since Friday am. During the day, he will be brought before a court " the ED official said.

Chatterjee, who served as the state education minister from 2014 to 2021, was questioned by the CBI in April and May of this year in connection with the scam. Opposition The BJP slammed the development and demanded a response from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
"The chief minister must issue a statement in response to the arrest of a cabinet minister. The arrest demonstrates that the TMC is mired in corruption "Dilip Ghosh, national vice president of the BJP, stated. 

Sukanta Majumdar, state president of the BJP, said Chatterjee's detention exemplifies the TMC's "Bengal model of growth." "The involvement of TMC ministers and leaders in corruption is an illustration of the 'Bengal development model.' The cash confiscation of Rs 21 crore is only the tip of the iceberg. The chief minister should respond to this "He said.

Speaker Biman Banerjee stated that the ED must notify him before detaining a member of the assembly. "When the ED or CBI arrests an MP or MLA, they must notify the speaker of the Lok Sabha or assembly. This is the constitutional requirement. However, I have not got any communication from the ED regarding Chatterjee's arrest "He said.

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