Bengal school job case: Partha Chatterjee, Ayan Shil shown as arrested by CBI

Kolkata: Former West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee and private promoter Ayan Shil, who were already in judicial custody in connection with the multi-crore school job case, were, on Tuesday, shown as arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Both Chatterjee and Shil were arrested by the officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is conducting a parallel probe in the cash-for-school job case.

Chatterjee was the first arrest made by the ED in the case in July 2022.

He was arrested after the ED officials seized cash worth over Rs 50 crore, in addition to huge quantities of gold, in the form of biscuits, bars and ornaments from the twin residences of Chatterjee’s close associate Arpita Mukherjee.

Mukherjee was also arrested then by the ED officials and she is also currently in judicial custody.

On the other hand, Shil, a private promoter, was also arrested by the ED officials in March 2023 in this connection.

Both Chatterjee and Shil were presented at a special court in Kolkata on Tuesday, where the CBI made an appeal to show them as arrested in the school job case and it was done after getting the permission of the court in the matter.

However, the CBI is not taking them into custody in the matter right now and both of them will continue to be in judicial custody.

Chatterjee was admitted to the jail hospital on Monday night after he complained of uneasiness and he virtually appeared at the special court from there.

However, Shil was physically presented at the court.

Chatterjee’s counsel pleaded for postponing the hearing because of his client’s hospitalisation. However, the judge of the special court observed that since the CBI was not seeking the custody of Chatterjee, it can be granted the permission to show the former state education minister as arrested.