KOLKATA: Former West Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee, an accused in the teachers’ recruitment scam in state government-sponsored and aided schools, was granted bail by a CBI court on Monday after spending more than three years behind bars.

Partha Chatterjee was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2022 for his alleged involvement in the cash-for-jobs scam related to the recruitment of teachers organized by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC).

Several other leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress and senior officials of the WBSSC were also arrested in connection with the scam, most of whom have since been granted bail.

Another central agency, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), had earlier raided his residence in Naktala, on the southern fringe of the city. During separate marathon raids at two flats owned by his close associate, Arpita Mukherjee, ED officials seized around ₹50 crore in cash and five kilograms of jewellery worth approximately ₹4.3 crore.

Arpita Mukherjee was arrested by the ED and was later granted bail by the court.

The arrest of Partha Chatterjee, who was regarded as the second most powerful minister in the Mamata Banerjee cabinet, had dealt a major blow to the ruling party in West Bengal. It also prompted opposition parties such as the BJP and CPI(M) to take to the streets, demanding the arrest of several other high-profile figures allegedly involved in the multi-crore scam.