Former West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee, a senior Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and key accused in the state’s multi-crore school recruitment scam, has been granted bail by a special CBI court in Kolkata. Court officials confirmed that the ₹90,000 bail bond has been furnished, and once the formal release order is issued, it will be sent to the Presidency Jail authorities for his discharge.
Chatterjee, who is currently under medical care at a private hospital along the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass, is expected to be released shortly following completion of legal formalities.
The former minister had been in judicial custody since July 22, 2022, after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted extensive raids that uncovered large quantities of cash, gold jewellery, and immovable assets linked to him and his close associates. Subsequent investigations under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) revealed that the alleged scam generated over ₹100 crore in illicit gains, including 40 properties worth around ₹41 crore and ₹48 crore in cash and bank deposits.
According to the CBI’s findings, the recruitment scam involved the appointment of unqualified individuals to teaching and non-teaching positions in government and aided schools across West Bengal. Many of these appointments allegedly bypassed merit-based tests, interviews, and eligibility norms, with bribes exchanged for employment.
The CBI has filed chargesheets against Chatterjee and more than 20 co-accused, invoking provisions related to criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery, and use of forged documents. The case, which has exposed systemic corruption in the state’s education department, continues to be one of the largest and most politically sensitive investigations in recent years.
Chatterjee’s bail marks a major development in the ongoing probe, though he remains under scrutiny by both the CBI and ED as proceedings under the PMLA and other criminal statutes continue.
