The CBI has sought details of the income tax returns of ministers Partha Chatterjee and Paresh Chandra Adhikary from the income tax department in connection with the probe into alleged irregularities in appointments by the School Service Commission (SSC).
Officers of the central investigation agency said they would cross-check the IT returns filed by the two with data from their bank accounts and other documents the ministers had submitted when they were questioned by the agency last week.
The case drawn up by the CBI includes charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy, and a section under the Prevention of Corruption Act, a senior CBI officer said.
Chatterjee, who was education minister when the allegedly illegal recruitment of teachers and other staff for government-aided schools was made in 2019, is now in charge of the commerce and industries department.
He faced a team of CBI officers last Wednesday and has been again called for questioning this Wednesday.
Officers said he was questioned in connection with hundreds of allegedly illegal recruitments in Bengal’s government-aided schools.
The CBI has questioned Adhikary, minister of state for education, for three consecutive days last week. Officers said the interrogation focussed on the alleged calls the MLA from Mekhliganj in Cooch Behar had made regarding daughter Ankita’s appointment as a school teacher and whether he had any role in the “illegal” appointment of his daughter.
Calcutta High Court has ordered that Ankita be sacked as a teacher and asked her to return the salary she has got so far.
“The IT files will be scrutinised by a team of experts in financial audits and the report will be submitted to Calcutta High Court,” the CBI officer said.
Sources in the CBI said they had sought details of all moveable and immoveable assets of the two ministers and their PAN details from the income tax department. Details of income tax files of some close relatives of the ministers have also been sought, the sources said.
The sleuths are trying to figure out whether money from unknown and unidentified sources was parked in the bank accounts of close aides or relatives of the ministers.
Insiders in the agency said Chatterjee and Adhikary have denied having received any money in return for jobs in government-aided schools.
