Kolkata, Dec 23 (IANS) The process of framing of charge in the case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the cash-for-school job case is scheduled for Monday’s second half at a special court in Kolkata.
However, sources said that the investigating officials are keeping their fingers crossed over the smooth completion of the charges-framing process over uncertainties of the physical presence of two key individuals named as accused in the case.
One of them is a prime accused in the case Sujay Krishna Bhadra considering the series of instances of him dodging physical presence at the court in the recent past on medical grounds.
At the same time, it is not yet certain that another accused in the case Kalyanmoy Bhattacharya, who is currently settled abroad, would be able to appear at the special court on Monday.
Bhattacharya is the son-in-law of former West Bengal Education Minister and Trinamool Congress Secretary General Partha Chatterjee, who is another prime accused in the ED-registered case and is scheduled to be physically present at the special court.
As per the rule, the process of charge framing cannot be concluded unless all named as accused in the charge sheet are physically present on the day of framing of charges.
In the case of individuals named in the charge sheet, the accused person is required to be present at the court. In case, the accused named in the charge sheet is any institution or corporate entity, any representative of that entity is required to be present.
In the subsequent charge sheets filed by the ED in the school job case, a total of 54 had been named, out of which 29 are individuals and 24 are corporate entities and trusts.
The prime trust named in the charge sheet is Babli Chatterjee Memorial Trust, named after the deceased wife of Partha Chatterjee. The ED has claimed in the charge sheet that proceeds in the school job case were shown as donations to the trust and thus diverted.
–IANS
src/dpb
