WB: ED attaches Rs 163 cr worth assets in WBSSC recruitment 'scam' case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday said it has attached assets worth more than Rs 163 crore linked to the alleged "main middleman" and his associated entities in fresh action in a reported "scam" in the recruitment of group C and D category staff by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC).

The federal agency earlier attached properties worth Rs 230.6 crore in connection with the alleged irregularities in the hiring of assistant teachers and Rs 151 crore worth of assets in the primary teachers recruitment "scam" in West Bengal. Both recruitments were done by the WBSSC.

The federal agency stated that five hotels and resorts, 230 land parcels and 17 flats and shops of Prasanna Kumar Roy, the "main middleman" in these cases, his wife Kajal Soni Roy and a company controlled and operated by Roy named Shree Durga Dealcom Pvt. Ltd have been provisionally attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The value of the attached properties is Rs 163.20 crore, it said.

The attached assets include Chalankita Resort situated at Shyampur in Howrah, Royal Bengal Resort at Sunderbans, Hotel Mili (Rubina) in Digha, Hotel Murti at Jalpaiguri and Bamboo Village Resort in Alipurduar.

The money laundering probe stems from a CBI FIR and charge sheets registered for the alleged "illegal appointment of Group 'C' and 'D' employees by offering appointment to the undeserving, non-listed and below-ranked candidates and consequently depriving the deserving and genuine candidates".

It is alleged that the appointments were made without maintaining fairness, in a criminal conspiracy by various persons and by flouting the relevant rules, according to the ED.

The CBI charge sheets stated that a total of 3,432 (1,125 for group 'C' and 2,307 for group 'D') employees were appointed or recommended "illegally" by the officials of WBSSC in criminal conspiracy with others, it said.

Roy and former WBSSC advisor Santi Prasad Sinha were arrested by the ED in the assistant teachers recruitment "scam" linked money laundering case and they are in judicial custody at present.