ED Attaches Rs. 57.78 Crore in West Bengal SSC Assistant Teacher Recruitment Scam

Background

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Kolkata Zonal Office, has provisionally attached immovable properties worth approximately Rs. 57.78 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) in connection with the West Bengal Central School Service Commission (SSC) Assistant Teacher Recruitment Scam (Classes IX to XII).

The attached properties belong to Jiban Krishna Saha, MLA, Prasanna Kumar Roy, and others. These include multiple residential apartments, villas and land parcels located in Rajarhat, New Town, Patharghata, Garagari, and other areas in North 24 Parganas, as well as Murshidabad and Purba Bardhaman districts, including HIDCO-developed areas of Kolkata. The ED stated that these properties were acquired using Proceeds of Crime generated through illegal teacher appointments.

The investigation was initiated on the basis of CBI FIRs registered pursuant to directions of the Calcutta High Court, relating to large-scale manipulation in the SSC recruitment process. The probe revealed tampering of OMR sheets and personality test scores, and appointments made beyond panel validity in exchange for illegal gratification.

According to the ED, Prasanna Kumar Roy acted as the principal middleman, laundering large sums through a network of companies, LLPs and bank accounts. Jiban Krishna Saha, a key accused, was arrested by the ED on August 25, 2025, and allegedly used laundered funds to acquire properties worth Rs. 3.01 crore.

With this attachment, the total value of properties attached by ED Kolkata in recruitment scam cases has reached Rs. 698 crore.