Calcutta HC orders CBI to probe suspected job scam, this time in civic bodies

In May 2022, justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay ordered a CBI probe into the bribe-for-job case in the education department which has so far led to the arrest of three Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislators

KOLKATA: The Calcutta high court on Friday ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the possibility of irregularities in recruitment in a large number of civic bodies across West Bengal, said lawyers who attended the hearing.

The home of a fourth TMC lawmaker was being raided by CBI on Friday when justice Gangopadhyay ordered the new probe. (File Photo)

“The judge passed the order during a hearing on an alleged education department scam. A report placed before the court by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said documents recovered during the ongoing probe indicate that a similar scam took place in numerous civic bodies,” lawyer Firdous Samim, who is representing victims of the alleged school recruitment scam, told the media after the ruling by justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay.

In May 2022, justice Gangopadhyay ordered a CBI probe into the bribe-for-job case in the education department which has so far led to the arrest of three Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislators. The home of a fourth TMC lawmaker was being raided by CBI on Friday when justice Gangopadhyay ordered the new probe.

Samim said ED told the court that these documents cited above were recovered from the home of businessman Ayan Sil, a prime suspect in the school recruitment case. “Sil was arrested in March. The court ordered CBI to initiate a separate investigation into the civic bodies and register a first information report (FIR) if required. The CBI has been asked to submit its preliminary findings before the court by April 28,” Samim added.

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member Santanu Sen said: “We have the highest respect for the judiciary. The judge is free to order CBI and ED probes. But has he ever asked these agencies why they have not arrested Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari who is an accused in both the Narada bribery case and the Saradha chit fund scam? These investigations started years ago.”

BJP leaders welcomed the new probe.

“Every citizen of Bengal knows that corruption and TMC are synonymous,” said Bengal BJP’s chief spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya.

In May 2022, justice Gangopadhyay ordered the CBI to probe the appointment of non-teaching staff (Group C and D) and teaching staff by the West Bengal School Service Commission and West Bengal Board of Secondary Education between 2014 and 2021. The appointees allegedly paid bribes in the range of ₹5-15 lakh to get jobs after failing the selection tests.

ED arrested the then education minister Partha Chatterjee, an MLA from Kolkata, in July last year. Manik Bhattacharya, the legislator from Palashipara in Nadia was arrested by ED in October. Jiban Krishna Saha, the legislator from Burwan in Murshidabad, was arrested by CBI on April 17. On Friday, CBI raided the home of Tapas Saha, the legislator from Tehatta in Nadia.