File photo of Assam Congress chief Anjan Dutta.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi today appointed a new party chief for Assam. But her choice, Anjan Dutta, a former transport minister in the Gogoi Cabinet, could raise eyebrows as the Assam politician might be embroiled in the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam.
Dutta, who replaces Bhubaneswar Kalita, was named by Saradha chief Sudipto Sen as one of the Assam politicians whose newspaper was funded by his group. His residence and office were raided by a CBI team early September, following which Dutta claimed he had nothing to hide and that he was involved only in a 'business transaction' with the Saradha group.
Speaking to NDTV on the issue, Dutta said, "See I know that I am a clean person. Until today not a single FIR has been against me in any of the police station in the state or country. As a businessman, that was a business deal and there is no question of any illegal activity."
Dutta's nomination comes just a day after the arrest of West Bengal Transport Minister Madan Mitra in connection with the chit fund scam.