West Bengal Minister Sujit Bose. File
| Photo Credit: PTI
Former West Bengal Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Sujit Bose was on Monday (May 11, 2026) arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in the municipal recruitment scam case.
Mr. Bose, who served as Minister of Fire and Emergency Services in the previous government led by Mamata Banerjee, was questioned for several hours by the Central investigation agency before being taken into custody.
“Sujit Bose had illegally recommended 150 candidates for different posts under the South Dum Dum Municipality in lieu of pecuniary benefits. The ED has traced direct proceeds of crime in the form of flats acquired by him in lieu of providing municipality jobs to various persons. Further, the ED has also traced huge deposits of cash in the bank accounts under his control,” a statement by the agency said.
The investigation agency said that Mr. Bose would be produced on May 12 before a special court. The Trinamool leader was summoned on various occasions by the ED during the campaign for the West Bengal Assembly polls.
Mr. Bose lost to the BJP’s Sharadwat Mukherjee in the Bidhannagar Assembly segment by a margin of 37,330 votes. The Trinamool leader won the election on three occasions from 2011 in Bidhannagar.
The investigation agency had stumbled upon the municipal recruitment scam while investigating the school recruitment scam in the State, when searches were carried out at various premises linked to Ayan Sil, an aide of an expelled Trinamool Congress leader, in 2023. During the search, several incriminating documents along with digital evidence were recovered and seized from the possession of Mr. Sil.
“The scrutiny of the incriminating documents had revealed that the scam is not only limited to recruitment of teachers but also covers several other appointments by various municipalities [including Kanchrapara, New Barrackpore, Kamarhati, Titagarh, Baranagar, Halisahar and South Dum Dum], which includes recruitment of mazdoors, sweepers, clerks, peons, ambulance attendants, pump operators, helpers, sanitary assistants, drivers, etc,” a press statement by the ED in October 2025 had stated.
Published – May 11, 2026 04:03 pm IST
