Police summon Kunal Ghosh again in Saradha scam

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member Kunal Ghosh, suspended from the party, was Wednesday summoned by police in West Bengal yet again in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam.

Ghosh, who earlier headed Saradha's media arm, iterated that he would present himself whenever he was summoned by the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate that is probing the scam.

"I will try to answer all the questions. Before the company collapsed and admitted there was no money, I had given back the money that I had earned to help pay off dues of co-workers. So it hurts to hear these allegations after all that," Ghosh said.

Earlier this week, Somnath Dutta, a senior executive of the chit fund-aided Saradha media and close aide of Ghosh, was sent to police custody for seven days in connection with the multi-crore-rupee scam.

Dutta was arrested from his Salt Lake residence Saturday, hours after Ghosh was placed under suspension by the Trinamool Congress on disciplinary grounds.

On Sep 20, Ghosh lashed out against the party, alleging he was being made a scapegoat by those involved in the scandal. He also demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the case.

Ghosh was summoned by police the night of Sep 20 for interrogation.

Over the past few days, he has continued to attack the Trinamool, alleging that a Trinamool leader has taken Rs.4 crore from Saradha boss Sudipto Sen. The party announced his suspension Sep 28 on disciplinary grounds.

The Saradha scandal -- the biggest such scandal to hit the state -- came to light in April when the company closed shop across Bengal, unable to pay back depositors, many of whom were from poorer sections of society and had parked their life's savings with the company, lured by the promise of huge returns.

As the company went bust, many agents and investors committed suicide, and protests took place across the state.

Saradha promoter Sudipta Sen was arrested, along with his close aides, from Sonmarg in Jammu and Kashmir April 23.