Go after masterminds of teachers' scam in West Bengal

Kolkata:A judge of a special CBI court on Thursday asked the central probe agency not to restrict its probe into the multi-crore teachers' recruitment scam in West Bengal to just middlemen, and instead try to nab the masterminds of the scam.

Justice Arpan Chattopadhyay made the remarks while hearing the bail petition of three arrested middlemen in the scam -- Kuntal Ghosh, Niladri Ghosh and Tapas Mondal. Out of the three, Kuntal Ghosh is also a state secretary of the youth wing of Trinamool Congress.

"Reaching the masterminds of the scam is extremely crucial. If you cannot reach the main brains behind the scam, what is the point in keeping these accused middlemen in custody for an indefinite period? Is this adding any pace to the investigation process? Have you recorded the statements that you have taken," Chattopadhyay asked the CBI counsel.

In reply, the CBI counsel informed the court that this is a major scam and often the accused persons are making deliberate attempts to mislead the investigators.

"Hence, the investigating officials are taking careful steps. The process of investigating the source and destination of crime proceeds and identifying the different channels is taking time," the CBI counsel said.

Moving the bail plea on behalf of his client, Kuntal Ghosh's lawyer claimed that the main charge against Ghosh is that he accepted money for arranging primary teachers' jobs in state-run schools.

"But the CBI is yet to provide any substantial evidence to prove this charge. Is this not a failure on the part of the investigating agency," Ghosh's counsel questioned.

Tapas Mondal's counsel claimed that his client is being kept in custody unnecessarily though he has been cooperating with the investigation since the beginning, adding that based on the information given by him, the CBI has nabbed some of those involved in the scam.

The court, however, rejected all the three bail pleas, and extended the judicial custody of Kuntal Ghosh, Niladri Ghosh and Tapas Mondal till March 23.