Teachers' scam: 12 bank accounts of arrested Trinamool MLA, wife under CBI lens

Kolkata, April 18 (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probing the multi-crore teachers' recruitment scam in West Bengal is looking into 12 bank accounts held by arrested Trinamool Congress MLA Jiban Krishna Saha and his wife Togori Saha.

Sources said that of the 12 accounts held in different public sector and private banks, eight are in Murshidabad district while the remaining four are in Birbhum district.

It is learnt that the 12 bank accounts have combined deposits of slightly over Rs 12 crore. Saha, who is currently in CBI custody, is being questioned by the CBI about the sources of such huge deposits.

Out of the 12 accounts, four are in the name of the arrested MLA, three in the name of his wife and the remaining five are held jointly, sources added.

Earlier, the CBI had tracked multiple high-value properties owned by Saha and his family members. What has surprised the CBI is that majority of these high-value properties owned by Saha and his family members are located in Birbhum district, whereas Saha is the Trinamool legislator from Burwan Assembly constituency in his home district Murshidabad.

The development has given rise to the question of Saha's possible links to the cattle smuggling scam, considering that Birbhum was the epicentre of the cattle scam, in which the ruling party's Birbhum district President Anubrata Mondal is already under judicial custody.

Sources said that being a bordering district, Murshidabad has a deep-routed link with the cattle smuggling scam as cows smuggled in from the different cattle trading hubs in Birbhum were sent to Bangladesh via Murshidabad border.

The CBI has also learnt that Saha and Mondal shared an extremely cordial relationship.

Meanwhile, following the protocol, the CBI on Tuesday informed the office of Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee about Saha's arrest since he is a sitting member of the House.