Kunal Ghosh's Explosive Claims on School Recruitment Scam
Kunal Ghosh, recently removed from his post as the TMC's West Bengal general secretary, has made a shocking claim. He alleges that the party was aware of the school recruitment scam even before the 2021 assembly polls. This statement, coming from someone considered close to TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, adds fuel to the ongoing controversy surrounding the SSC scam.
Ghosh's removal from his post followed his public appearance with a BJP Lok Sabha candidate, where he praised the candidate. In an interview with ABP Ananda, Ghosh stated, "The party was well aware of the large-scale corruption and extortion taking place in the school education department. They knew about it even before the 2021 assembly polls."
Ghosh, who has been advocating for a larger role for next-generation leaders within the TMC, believes that Partha Chatterjee's shift from the education ministry to the industry department after the 2021 polls was due to this knowledge of widespread corruption.
His remarks come just a week after the Calcutta High Court declared the recruitment process of the State Level Selection Test-2016 (SLST) in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools as "null and void," leading to the cancellation of all appointments made through it. This decision has resulted in the loss of jobs for around 26,000 individuals.
Previously, the TMC leadership had maintained that they were unaware of the scam until Chatterjee's arrest in 2022. However, Ghosh's claims suggest otherwise. Following his arrest, Chatterjee was expelled from the party and removed from the state cabinet. Several other TMC leaders, including MLA Manik Bhattacharya and Jiban Krishna Saha, have also been arrested in connection with the scam.
The SSC scam has become a major issue in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, raising questions about the TMC's involvement and its handling of the situation. Ghosh's recent statement further complicates the matter and adds to the pressure on the party to provide clear answers.