“On the face of it you are a corrupt person. Crores of rupees were recovered from your premises. What message do you want us to send to society? That a corrupt person can get bail like this?” These were the scathing remarks delivered by the Supreme Court bench while dismissing Former TMC Minister Partha Chatterjee’s bail.
Notably, on 4th December, the bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan came down heavily on former TMC minister Partha Chatterjee. The TMC leader was caught by the Enforcement Directorate, for his involvement in the cash-for-job scam in the state.
The Supreme Court expressed strong reservations over granting bail to the former TMC Minister. The court reserved its verdict on his bail plea and also questioned the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over his continued incarceration saying he cannot be kept inside for an indefinite period.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Partha Chatterjee, argued that all co-accused had been granted bail and therefore the former minister too should be granted bail. Reacting to this, the court emphasized that Partha Chatterjee held a higher position of authority as a minister and therefore he and other co-accused can’t be put in the same line.
“Not everyone was a minister. You were at the top. You can question delays in investigation but not the merit of the case,” the bench told Rohatgi.
Subsequently, heated arguments surrounded the courtroom. Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, representing the Enforcement Directorate (ED), asserted that even if Partha Chatterjee was granted bail, he would remain in custody due to pending CBI cases.
To which, Rohatgi objected, stating, “This is like he is having great sadistic pleasure. I have been in custody for 2.5 years.”
Rohatgi then argued that the money was not recovered directly from his client but from premises owned by a company to which the bench pointed out that Chatterjee had de facto control over the company and that properties were jointly held in his name and that of Arpita Mukherjee.
“After becoming a minister, you placed dummy persons to manage matters, but earlier, you controlled them directly. These cases date back to 2022. As a minister, it’s obvious you wouldn’t initiate an investigation against yourself. The investigation began only due to judicial intervention. The allegation involves the recovery of ₹28 crore, which clearly would not have been stored in a residential property,” the bench observed.
The court emphasized the need to assess whether granting bail would impact the ongoing investigation and what conditions could be imposed, while acknowledging that indefinite incarceration was not permissible.
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In July 2022, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested former West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee in connection with the alleged School Service Commission (SSC) teacher recruitment scam. Chatterjee, a senior leader of the TMC was accused of being involved in irregularities in the recruitment of teaching staff in state-run schools.
During its investigation, the ED recovered over ₹21 crore in cash from the residence of Arpita Mukherjee, an associate of Chatterjee. Along with the cash, more than 20 mobile phones were also seized from her premises. The ED claimed that the recovered money was suspected to be the proceeds of the scam. To handle the large quantity of cash, bank officials were called in to count it using specialized machines.
The ED in the court has claimed that ₹49.8 crore in cash, gold bars, and documents of properties were recovered from properties linked to Partha Chatterjee and his associate Arpita Mukherjee.
The bench has noted the de-facto control Chatterjee had over the company and properties involved.
