Calcutta HC grants bail to former Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee, but restricts him from work as MLA

Though granted bail in the case filed by the CBI, Chatterjee cannot walk out of jail due to a Supreme Court order that requires charges to be framed and witness statements to be recorded in his pending cases by October 18.

Earlier this month, Chatterjee had secured bail in the alleged School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment scam concerning an alleged “tainted” recruitment process for teachers of classes 9-12. The Alipore Special CBI Court had granted him bail on a personal bond of Rs 7,000, which was the first time a lower court extended him bail. However, multiple other cases continued to keep him behind bars.

In August, the Supreme Court had granted him bail in the non-teaching Group C staff recruitment case, observing that he had been in detention for three years without trial. The apex court had ruled that his release would come only after the trial court completed the examination of key witnesses within two months.

Chatterjee, a senior Trinamool Congress leader and MLA from Behala West, was arrested in July 2022 in connection with the alleged cash-for-jobs scam in the education department. He is accused of facilitating illegal appointments of unqualified candidates as primary school teachers, assistant teachers and staff.

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.