Kolkata, Mar 19 (IANS): Amid the assembly poll heat in West Bengal, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday questioned former Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Gupta and former Transport Minister Madan Mitra in connection with its probe into the Saradha chit fund scam case.

Gupta, who is also contesting as a Trinamool Congress candidate from Jorasanko assembly constituency in the West Bengal assembly polls, appeared before the agency at its Salt Lake office here.

Gupta was questioned for more than three hours.

Former Transport Minister Mitra also appeared before the agency.

Both were issued summons separately in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam case by the financial probe agency.

Mitra is contesting the assembly polls from Kamarhati assembly constituency in the state as a Trinamool Congress candidate. Mitra was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2014 in connection with the multi-crore Saradha scam. He was released on bail two years later in 2016.

The ED had questioned noted artist Subhaprasanna Bhattacharjee and Trinamool MLA Samir Chakraborty in connection with the same case.

On March 2 this year, the ED had questioned former Rajya Sabha member and Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh for more than eight hours in connection with the case.

The Saradha scam came to light in April 2013 and is estimated at over Rs 10,000 crore. The ED has filed a case on the basis of the FIR lodged by the CBI.

Polling for the 294-member West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases -- on March 27, April 1, April 6, April 10, April 17, April 22, April 26 and April 29. The results will be declared on May 2.