Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], November 11 : Former West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee was granted bail and released after three years and three months after he was arrested in connection with a teacher recruitment scam case. A lower court granted him bail.
He was arrested in connection with a recruitment scam case by the Central Bureau of Investigation CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). He arrived at his Naktala residence after being released.
He was shifted to the hospital from Presidency Jail due to his health conditions and admitted to RN Tagore Hospital in Kolkata.
Earlier in May, the Supreme Court directed the West Bengal government to grant sanction for prosecuting TMC-leader Partha Chatterjee and other persons accused in the cash-for-jobs scam in the State.
Partha Chatterjee was booked by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the scam where around 26,000 teachers and other school staff were recruited by the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC). The entire recruitment was later held illegal by the Calcutta High Court, and subsequently the High Court's decision was also upheld by the Supreme Court, which had termed the recruitment as "tainted" and based on "large-scale fraud".
In July 2022, the ED arrested Chatterjee, the former West Bengal Education Minister and TMC leader. Chatterjee was previously lodged at the Presidency Correctional Home in May this year. The Enforcement Directorate had earlier recovered over Rs 21 crore in cash from the house of an associate of Chatterjee.TMC had suspended Chatterjee from the party after his arrest.