KOLKATA: Expelled Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee's "close associate" Arpita Mukherjee claimed on Tuesday that the money found in her flats was kept in her absence and she had no knowledge about the same.
"Taka aamar na. Amar onuposthitite ebong amar oojante taka dhokano hoeche (The money doesn't belong to me. The money was kept in my absence and without my knowledge)," Mukherjee told reporters while being taken to the Joka ESI Hospital for routine medical check-up on Tuesday.
TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh, while reacting to Mukherjee's claims, said: "She is saying something everyday but since she is not a party member, I don't think there is much for the party to react to her claims. If someone kept cash at her home without her knowledge, then ED should probe who all had access to her home."
Unlike other occasions, when Mukherjee was seen extremely expressive with her emotions, she was calm and quiet on Tuesday, breaking down her statement in small sentences but in a voice loud enough to be audible to reporters waiting outside the hospital.
She was hurried inside the hospital by Enforcement Directorate officers immediately after that.
Mukherjee along with Chatterjee was brought to the court around 11 am from CGO Complex in two separate cars. While Chatterjee had claimed he was a victim of conspiracy and that he didn't have any money on two separate occasions during his earlier visits, he didn't say anything on Tuesday.
Mukherjee was, however, vocal, just like she had been during her earlier visits and once again claimed she had nothing to do with the money.
On Sunday, she had screamed "Amar Noye..Amar noye...amar noye (not mine, not mine, not mine)," before the waiting reporters when asked about Rs 50 crore in cash found in her two flats. Two days prior to that she was found wailing and crying while refusing to step out of the ED vehicle at the hospital. She had even tried to squat on the road while exclaiming, "Aami ar parchhi na (I can't take it any more)."
Meanwhile, ED is likely to seek fresh remand for both Chatterjee and Mukherjee before the PMLA court on Wednesday on the ground that Chatterjee has allegedly refused to cooperate with the investigators over the past nine days of interrogation process.
ED officers, however, said Mukherjee has been cooperating with the investigators.
Till Tuesday, Chatterjee has already served 12 days in custody while Mukherjee has been in custody for 11 days. ED can seek a maximum of 15 days custody following arrest and thus they can still get Chatterjee and Mukherjee to three and four days of custody respectively.
