Bengal School Recruitment Scam: ED Conducts Raids In Kolkata For 12 Hours

A large contingent of central forces accompanied the ED officials during the raids, in areas such as New Town and Nayabad on the eastern outskirts of Kolkata, as well as Mukundapur in the south.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at eight locations in and around Kolkata on Thursday as part of its investigation into suspected irregularities in the recruitment process at state-run and aided schools in West Bengal. The raids, which began around 6:30 AM, unfolded in phases throughout the day, concluding with the final operation around 10 PM, reported news agency PTI. The targeted locations included residences, offices, and bungalows associated with individuals allegedly serving as intermediaries in the purported scam, an ED official told PTI.

"These intermediaries were involved in the collection and transfer of funds to various addresses. Our raids are focused on the places of residence and offices utilised by them," stated the ED official.

A large contingent of central forces accompanied the ED officials during the raids, in areas such as New Town and Nayabad on the eastern outskirts of Kolkata, as well as Mukundapur in the south. The officer noted that family members of the implicated intermediaries were also subjected to questioning.

Of particular interest to the investigators is an intermediary with close ties to former Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee and MLA Jibon Saha, PTI reported. Both are currently behind bars in connection with the alleged scam. The individual in question reportedly holds properties at over 400 locations in the state, prompting the ED to delve into the financial origins of these assets by scrutinizing bank documents and property-related records.

Additionally, the ED revealed that another middleman's name emerged during the ongoing investigation, prompting search operations at the individual's residence.

During the course of Thursday's interrogations, ED officers uncovered information about yet another property linked to one of the intermediaries, leading to a subsequent raid. The ED official told PTI, "We found that some of the properties were registered in the names of the middlemen and some in the names of their associates. We will investigate further to find out more about their roles in the scam."

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), concurrently investigating the scam, has identified the same middleman as an important link in the irregularities around school job appointments.

Last week, the ED conducted a raid at the Kolkata residence of TMC MLA Tapas Roy in connection with its probe into the alleged irregularities in recruitment in civic bodies.