BJP Rajya Sabha MP Roopa Ganguly, party national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and two other leaders were today summoned by the CID for questioning in connection with the Jalpaiguri child trafficking case. Hours after which the BJP national general secretary termed the summon as a symbol of "frustration and political vendetta" by the TMC government.
"A notice has been sent to Kailash Vijayvargiya and Roopa Ganguly and two others in connection with the child traficking case," a senior officer of West Bengal's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) told PTI.
"Vijayavargiya has been summoned to appear before our officers on July 24 while we will visit Ganguly's residence for questioning on July 29," he said.
He said that CID would question Ganguly over her alleged meeting with arrested former BJP women's wing general secretary Juhi Chowdhury, an accused in the case.
The CID had unearthed a child trafficking racket early this year in which babies and children were sold, some to foreigners, through questionable adoption deals.
Vijayvargiya said, "If they are serious about it, they should hand over the probe to CBI. But they are not serious about the probe.
"They only want to pursue vendetta politics, as TMC leaders have been summoned in Narada and other chit fund scam, they want to harass us. But the truth will come out and people will not forgive TMC.
West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh alleged that the summon to Vijayavargiya and Ganguly was a conspiracy hatched by the Trinamool Congress to tarnish BJP's image.
"Though the prime accused has already admitted that she never met Ganguly and Vijayavargiya, the CID still issued the summon to them. This is absolutely unnecessary. It is because the TMC has failed to stop the BJP in the state they are using the CID. This is nothing but harassment of our leaders," Ghosh told PTI.
The agency also summoned BJP leader Samik Bhattacharya to appear before it tomorrow in connection with their probe into the alleged scam regarding 'Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana' that surfaced in the Basirhat area in North 24-Parganas district.
"There is nothing in the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scam.
The CID has no evidence against Bhattacharya and by issuing the summon they are trying to harass him also," the state BJP chief said.
The CID had arrested several persons including the head of a child protection agency in Darjeeling and a member of a child welfare committee on charges of selling babies and children through questionable adoption deals.
These arrests were part of a widening probe into the adoption racket at the Bimala Shishu Griho, a children's home in Jalpaiguri town.
Sacked state BJP women's wing leader, Juhi Chowdhury, and the chief adoption officer of the children's home Sonali Mondal, the home's chairperson Chandana Chakraborty and her brother Manas Bhowmik were arrested earlier.
They have been charged with selling about 17 children, aged between one and 14 years, to foreigners by entering into shady adoption deals.
The CID had unearthed the child trafficking racket during raids at homes and nursing homes in Baduria area of North 24 Parganas district, in Behala in the southern fringes of Kolkata and some other parts of south Bengal in November last year.
