Kolkata, 25 August (H.S.):

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted raids at the residence of Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislator Jiban Krishna Saha in Murshidabad district as part of its probe into the West Bengal teachers’ recruitment scam. During the search, Saha allegedly attempted to evade investigators, running through the back of his house and throwing his mobile phone into nearby bushes. The device was later recovered from a drain, but the MLA has reportedly refused to share its password with officials.

According to sources, the ED questioned Saha regarding his call detail records of the past 90 days. Officials reportedly found several contradictions in his statements. He is also said to have denied access to at least two mobile phones by withholding their passwords.

The raid began early in the morning at Saha’s residence in Andi village, Murshidabad. On spotting the officials, the legislator attempted to escape but was intercepted by Central Armed Police Forces and brought back inside. It was during this commotion that he disposed of his phone. The recovered device has now been sent for forensic and technical examination to determine whether it contains crucial evidence.

ED officials also questioned Saha’s driver, Rajesh Ghosh, and searched his residence. Parallel raids were conducted at multiple locations, including the home of Saha’s aunt, Maya Saha—a TMC councillor from ward number nine in Birbhum’s Sainthia—as well as at his in-laws’ residence in Raghunathganj. Additionally, searches were carried out at the house of a Mahishgram-based bank officer, also named Rajesh Ghosh.

This is not the first time the TMC MLA has attempted to destroy potential evidence. In April 2023, during a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raid, he had thrown two mobile phones into a pond. Those devices were recovered after hours of effort. Saha was subsequently arrested in the same case and spent nearly 13 months in jail before being granted bail by the Supreme Court.

The ongoing ED action is part of a wider investigation into the teachers’ recruitment scam, in which several senior political leaders and government officials are already under scrutiny.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh