The CBI on Friday summoned Trinamul Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee to appear before its officers for interrogation on Saturday in connection with alleged irregularities in recruitment at schools.

The summons came a day after Justice Amrita Sinha of Calcutta High Court had rejected a plea by Abhishek to recall Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay’s earlier order to the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to interrogate him in the recruitment “scam”.

Abhishek has been asked to appear in the office of the CBI’s anti-corruption branch at Nizam Palace in Calcutta at 11am on Saturday.

The summons issued by Sanjay Kumar Samal, CBI’s deputy superintendent of police, directs Abhishek to appear “for the purpose of examination...”

Abhishek, who was in Bankura for the party’s mass outreach programme Trinamuley Nabo Jowar, returned to Calcutta on Friday night. He said he would lend “full cooperation during the course of the investigation”.

“I have received a summons from the CBI to appear before them tomorrow, on 20th May ’23 for examination. Despite not being given even a day’s prior notice, I will still abide by the summon. I will give my full cooperation during the course of the investigation,” the MP tweeted.

Abhishek said he would resume the outreach programme on May 22.

Earlier on Friday, Abhishek’s lawyer prayed to the division bench headed by Justice Subrata Talukdar for hearing the appeal against the order passed by Justice Sinha on Thursday. But the division bench declined to hear the case during the day for want of time.

Justice Talukdar asked Abhishek’s advocate to move his appeal before the division bench of Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam.

Abhishek’s counsel Kishore Datta then rushed to the division bench headed by the Chief Justice and prayed for at least an interim order staying Justice Sinha’s order till Monday. The division bench of the Chief Justice, too, declined to hear the case because of lack of time and advised Datta to move his appeal before a vacation bench of the court next week.

The Trinamul leader and his wife Rujira had faced interrogation by central investigating agencies on several occasions in the past couple of years.