In a major crackdown on corruption, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable properties worth ₹57.78 crore linked to the West Bengal Central School Service Commission (SSC) assistant teacher recruitment scam for classes 9 to 12. The attachments, executed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002, target assets owned by MLA Jiban Krishna Saha, Prasanna Kumar Roy, and others.
The seized properties include multiple flats, villas, and land parcels scattered across prime locations such as Rajarhat, New Town, Patharghata, Garagari in North 24 Parganas, as well as Murshidabad and Paschim Bardhaman districts. Several assets are also situated in Kolkata, investigators revealed.
ED’s probe established that these high-value properties were purchased using proceeds from the illicit teacher recruitment process. The scam involved widespread manipulation, including tampering with OMR sheets and interview scores, and appointing ineligible candidates even after deadlines expired.
Prasanna Kumar Roy emerged as the key middleman in this racket. He, along with associates, extorted huge sums from unqualified aspirants in exchange for jobs. The laundered money flowed through shell companies, LLPs, and bank accounts before being invested in real estate.
Jiban Krishna Saha, a prominent accused, played a pivotal role in collecting and utilizing scam proceeds for Group C, D, and assistant teacher appointments. ED arrested him on August 25, 2025, as he attempted to flee during raids at his Murshidabad residence. Properties worth ₹3.01 crore in his and his family’s name were traced to these illicit funds.
Further investigations uncovered properties bought in the name of Neelima Mangal, a close aide and former wife of Roy, also funded by scam money. Roy himself was arrested earlier, with chargesheet filed and accepted by a special court.
This latest attachment adds to ED’s aggressive actions in West Bengal recruitment scandals. Previously, ₹247.2 crore were attached in SSC Group C and D scam, ₹238.78 crore in the same assistant teacher case, and ₹154 crore in primary teacher irregularities. Cumulatively, Kolkata ED has frozen assets worth ₹698 crore in these cases, signaling a relentless pursuit of accountability.