Bengal School Employment Case: ED Faces Challenge as Nine Defendants Request Relief
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Kolkata, Dec 23 (NationPress) The Enforcement Directorate (ED), investigating a multi-crore cash-for-school job scandal in West Bengal, suffered a notable setback on Monday when nine accused individuals submitted petitions at a special court in Kolkata, seeking relief from the ongoing case.
The ED was anticipated to present its charge sheet against the accused at the special court in the latter part of Monday.
Among those filing for relief is Manik Bhattacharya, a prominent Trinamool Congress legislator and former president of the West Bengal Board of Primary Education. His wife, Shatarupa Bhattacharya, and son, Sauvik Bhattacharya, are also among the nine petitioners.
The basis of Bhattacharya's plea is that the ED did not adhere to the court's order to submit a "closure report" regarding the investigation.
The former and currently suspended youth leader of Trinamool Congress, Kuntal Ghosh, is the fourth individual to file a relief petition. His appeal is based on discrepancies between the charges laid against him and the various charge sheets submitted by the ED.
The remaining five individuals who have filed for relief are corporate employees named in the later charge sheets provided by the ED. They argued that they were unable to navigate through the extensive charge sheet copies that were sent to them prior to the charge framing.
The nine individuals who have submitted relief petitions were identified in subsequent charge sheets issued by the ED. A total of 54 names were included in the charge sheet, comprising 29 individuals and 24 corporate entities or trusts.
The primary trust mentioned in the charge sheet is the Babli Chatterjee Memorial Trust, named after the late wife of Partha Chatterjee. The ED alleges in the charge sheet that funds from the school job case were misrepresented as donations to the trust, thus misappropriating them.
