Bengal school job case: SC grants bail to suspended TMC leader Kuntal Ghosh

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to the suspended youth Trinamool Congress leader, Kuntal Ghosh, in connection with the cash-for-school job case lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Taking into consideration the delay in commencement of the trial, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan said that continued incarceration of Kuntal Ghosh would not be in conformity with the settled principles of criminal justice of speedy and fair trial.

Kuntal Ghosh will be released on conditions as may be fixed by the trial court. He will deposit his passport and will not leave the state of West Bengal without prior permission, as per the SC order.

The apex court added that bail conditions in the ED case will also apply to the CBI case.

Last week, the Calcutta High Court granted conditional bail to Kuntal Ghosh in the money laundering case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the school job case.

However, Kuntal Ghosh remained behind bars since his other bail plea in the case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was then pending before the apex court.

In the ED case, the Calcutta HC had ordered Kuntal Ghosh to submit his passport and mobile number to the court, adding that the mobile number submitted cannot be altered.

It also directed Kuntal Ghosh to present himself before the trial court regularly and not make any attempt to influence the witnesses.

Kuntal had initially approached the Supreme Court with his bail petition in the ED case. However, the apex court referred the matter back to the Calcutta High Court.

ED claimed before the Calcutta High Court that hefty amounts totalling over Rs 1.5 crore had been credited to the bank account of Kuntal Ghosh just a few days after his arrest on January 11, 2023.

Kuntal Ghosh, the former youth leader of Trinamool Congress, has serious charges against him, which include collecting hefty amounts to the tune of Rs 19 crore from various ineligible candidates for illegal selection for teaching and non-teaching jobs in different state-run schools in West Bengal. Days after his arrest Trinamool Congress suspended him from the party.

IANS