Did the WBSSC Scam Lead to Arrests of Close Relatives of Trinamool MLA?

Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Investigation into bank accounts of close relatives of Jiban Krishna Saha.
- Allegations of illegal job placements in the WBSSC scam.
- Ed scrutiny for financial discrepancies.
- Judicial custody for Saha.
- Need for transparency in political processes.
Kolkata, Sep 1 (NationPress) The bank accounts, assets, and properties of Jiban Krishna Saha, a recently arrested Trinamool MLA, are currently under investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in relation to the significant cash-for-school-job scandal in West Bengal.
Saha, who represents the Burwan Assembly constituency in Murshidabad district, was taken into custody on August 25 as part of the ED's inquiry into the school-job affair.
Sources within the agency indicated that the financial accounts of Saha's immediate family, including his parents and spouse, will undergo forensic analysis and financial examination to determine the amount of money from the school-job scam that may have been funneled into their accounts.
The investigation will also scrutinize the assets and properties of these relatives for any signs of disproportionate assets compared to income.
On Saturday, the PMLA court placed Saha in judicial custody for a duration of 12 days, as confirmed by officials.
This MLA, who was arrested by the ED in connection with the School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment scandal, had previously been apprehended by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for the same issue, which is currently under a separate investigation.
Allegations against Saha include facilitating job placements for individuals even after the recruitment panel's expiration, having allegedly received advance payments from those seeking employment.
His primary associate in this scheme was the former senior official of WBSSC, Santi Prasad Sinha, to whom Saha allegedly recommended 75 unqualified candidates for unlawful job placements.
Insiders revealed that each of these unqualified candidates paid Rs 7 lakh to secure their jobs illegally, with a specific middleman orchestrating the entire transaction.
On August 25, the ED apprehended Saha at his residence in Burwan, Murshidabad.
During the arrest, he attempted to escape by climbing a boundary wall and discarded one of his two mobile phones into a bush.
However, ED officials prevented his escape and retrieved the mobile device.
Following his inability to satisfactorily explain the significant amounts of money discovered in his relatives' bank accounts, Saha was subsequently arrested by the central investigative agency.