West Bengal's mass education extension and library services department has ordered a full-fledged investigation into alleged irregularities in book procurement for government-run libraries and state school libraries during the previous Trinamool Congress (TMC) regime, officials confirmed on 16 July. The probe follows a wave of complaints received by the office of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari alleging that public funds were misused to purchase books of poor literary quality that were authored by relatives or associates of TMC leaders, or published by houses with ties to the former ruling party.

What Triggered the Investigation

According to a senior department official, Chief Minister Adhikari was apprised of the complaints and subsequently directed Mass Education Extension and Library Services Minister Gouri Shankar Ghosh to order a detailed probe. The complaints allege that books were selected not on merit but on the basis of political patronage — a practice reportedly sustained across multiple budget cycles.

A particularly flagged concern is the alleged bulk purchase of the same titles, written by favoured authors or released by favoured publishers, for the same state-run libraries year after year — draining funds allocated to the department without delivering proportionate value to readers.

Key Angles Under Scrutiny

Investigators are expected to examine at least two distinct angles of alleged misconduct. The first is the direct patronage angle — the systematic purchase of books linked to TMC-affiliated writers and publishers. The second is a procedural failure: the complete absence of a screening or selection process to evaluate which books merited procurement and which did not.

'All these lapses will be probed now,' the department official said. The probe may also be referred to the judicial commission headed by retired Calcutta High Court Judge Justice Biswajit Basu for a more detailed investigation, the official added.

What the Chief Minister Said

At a recent public programme, Chief Minister Adhikari launched a sharp attack on the previous Mamata Banerjee-led administration, alleging that corruption had permeated every function of the state government. Drawing a historical comparison, Adhikari invoked the late Jyoti Basu's tribute to the late Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy — turning it on its head to describe the alleged scale of damage left behind by the TMC government.

'In 1977 after taking over as the Chief Minister, late Jyoti Basu made an interesting observation about the second West Bengal Chief Minister, late Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy. Basu said that every sphere of development that he intended to initiate then, was already initiated by Bidhan Chandra Roy before. And now after taking over as the new Chief Minister of West Bengal, I can witness the devastation created by the previous Trinamool Congress in every sphere that I keep my hands on,' Adhikari said earlier this month.

Broader Context

This probe is part of a wider pattern of post-election accountability actions initiated by the new West Bengal government following the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led administration's assumption of power. Critics of the previous TMC regime have pointed to multiple ongoing investigations — spanning recruitment, infrastructure, and now cultural expenditure — as evidence of systemic governance failures. The TMC has not yet issued a formal response to these specific allegations.

The outcome of the probe, particularly if referred to the Justice Basu judicial commission, could have significant implications for former officials and publishers who benefited from state library budgets during the TMC years.