Bengal school jobs case: Partha, 2 others to walk out of jail

In September this year, the High Court granted Chatterjee conditional bail, but he could not walk out of jail due to a Supreme Court order that required charges to be framed and witness statements to be recorded in his pending cases.

On Monday, the last of the eight witnesses recorded testimony, after which the special CBI court ordered the release of Chatterjee.

“As directed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India, the list of witnesses shortlisted by the Ld. Court… has been examined in totality. Following the spirit of the Hon’ble Supreme Court’s Order, the accused persons have been released on bail… Therefore, let a copy of the later part of the Order No. 119 dated 15.09.2025 be sent to the Ld. CJM, Alipore, South 24 Parganas, for acceptance of the bail bonds of Partha Chatterjee, Subiresh Bhattacharya, and Shanti Prasad Sinha and immediate release,” the CBI court order read, referring to the High Court’s September 15 order.

According to court sources, Chatterjee’s lawyer has already deposited the bail bond of Rs 90,000 as directed by the High Court. At present, Chatterjee is admitted to a private hospital in Kolkata.

“It has been a long fight. Whenever he (Partha Chatterjee) got bail from the courts, he was named in another case by the CBI and the ED. The CBI had said that they had some material witnesses and that if Chatterjee was released, it would impact the trial. The testimony of all eight witnesses was completed today, and finally, the court issued the release order,” the former minister’s counsel Biplab Goswami said.

According to the laid-down procedure, the release order from the special CBI court will be sent to the Presidency Jail in Kolkata, where Chatterjee is lodged. The order would then be sent to the private hospital where the former minister is currently admitted. Chatterjee is expected to be released by Tuesday morning, sources said.

In its order issued on September 15 this year, the single-judge bench of Justice Suvra Ghosh of the Calcutta High Court granted Partha Chatterjee conditional bail, saying he would not be able to work as an MLA, must surrender his passport, submit his mobile number without changing it, cooperate with investigating agencies, and refrain from influencing or speaking to witnesses.

In December 2024, the Supreme Court granted him bail, observing that he had been in detention for three years without a trial. The bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan asked the lower court to expedite the trial against him and said Chatterjee should not be appointed to any public office after his release, but can remain an MLA “during the pendency of the trial”.

On August 18 this year, the Supreme Court, granting him bail in another case, noted his continued detention for three years without trial and called it “a travesty of justice”.

A Bench headed by Justice MM Sundresh directed the framing of charges in the case.

The TMC MLA from Behala West was arrested in July 2022 in connection with the alleged cash-for-jobs scam in the education department. He has been accused of facilitating illegal appointments of unqualified candidates as primary school teachers, assistant teachers, and staff. After his arrest, the ruling TMC in the state suspended him from the party.

The alleged scam first came to light after unsuccessful candidates in the Teachers’ Eligibility Test moved the Calcutta High Court, which, on June 8, 2022, ordered a CBI probe. The CBI filed an FIR the next day, followed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) registering a money-laundering case on June 24, 2022, against several officials of the education department.