ED Attaches ₹3.65 Cr Assets of Bengal Minister
Action in Primary Teachers Recruitment Scam under PMLA
- ED attaches properties worth ₹3.65 crore of MLA Chandranath Sinha
- Case linked to alleged illegal primary teacher appointments
- ₹41 lakh cash earlier seized from his residence
- Total attachment in scam now crosses ₹154 crore
GG News Bureau
Kolkata, 4th Jan: The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Kolkata Zonal Office, has provisionally attached immovable properties worth ₹3.65 crore belonging to West Bengal MLA and Minister-in-Charge for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Textiles and Correctional Administration Chandranath Sinha in connection with the Primary Teachers Recruitment Scam.
The attachment was made on December 31, 2025, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The probe was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act, following directions from the Calcutta High Court.
According to the CBI, the case relates to the alleged illegal appointment of primary teachers, wherein undeserving, non-listed and lower-ranked candidates were appointed by flouting recruitment rules, depriving genuine candidates.
Earlier, the ED had filed a prosecution complaint against Sinha on August 6, 2025, before the Special PMLA Court in Kolkata. Searches conducted at his residence in March 2024 led to the seizure of ₹41 lakh in cash and incriminating documents.
The investigation revealed large cash deposits in bank accounts allegedly controlled by him and the acquisition of properties in the names of family members in and around Bolpur, Birbhum, which have now been attached.
So far, the ED has issued six provisional attachment orders amounting to about ₹98.65 crore in this case. The total seizure and attachment in the Primary Teachers Recruitment Scam now stands at approximately ₹154.91 crore.
In other related recruitment scam cases — including SSC Assistant Teacher and Group ‘C’ and ‘D’ staff recruitments — the ED has attached properties worth around ₹486 crore, taking the overall attachment in recruitment scam cases to nearly ₹641 crore. Further investigation is underway.
