Teachers’ recruitment scam: ED raids premises of ex-Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee, middleman

KOLKATA: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday conducted fresh searches against former West Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee and others as part of a money laundering investigation linked to the alleged teachers’ recruitment scam in the state, officials said.According to officials, two premises were searched in Kolkata, including Chatterjee’s residence and that of Prasanna Kumar Roy, a jailed alleged middleman in the case. Chatterjee, a suspended Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader who once served as the party’s secretary-general and a key strategist before its rise to power in 2011, has been under investigation in multiple recruitment-related cases.Officials said the latest action was taken after Chatterjee failed to appear before the ED for questioning on three occasions in connection with the alleged scam involving recruitment of West Bengal Central School Service Commission (SSC) assistant teachers for Classes IX to XII.Chatterjee was arrested by the ED in July 2022 in the alleged primary teachers’ recruitment scam. He was recently granted conditional bail by the Supreme Court and released from jail.The federal agency is probing multiple cases against him, including alleged irregularities in recruitment of primary teachers, SSC assistant teachers, and SSC Group C and D staff.(With agency inputs)