WB teachers' scam: CBI to interrogate 8 officials of education department

Kolkata:  In the latest development of West Bengal teachers' scam, at least eight officials of the West Bengal education department have come under the scanner of the CBI. The central agency is probing the multi-crore scam in the recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in different state-run schools.

Sources said that the central agency will summon these officials one by one for the interrogation purpose.

However, for the sake of investigation, the CBI has not revealed the identities of the officials who are under its lens, nor did the agency disclose the specific units they are associated with.

As per the sources, these eight officials were reportedly responsible for maintaining day-to-day communication with the agents engaged in identifying candidates. Then these candidates were willing to pay handsome amounts for obtaining teaching and non-teaching jobs in the state-run schools.

It is believed that the CBI has come across some critical information about hefty sums being transferred to the accounts of these officials.

On March 29, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is conducting a parallel probe into this multi-crore scam, had conducted search operations at two residences of Arnab Basu, an employee in the accounts department of West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC), in the Salt Lake area.

The investigating officials had also seized his laptop and cellphone. Later, he was summoned at the agency's office where he was interrogated for hours.