Municipal appts: Sil collected Rs 40cr from candidates, says ED
Times of India | 26 February 2025
Kolkata: Enforcement Directorate, in a supplementary charge sheet filed in the municipality recruitment case, alleged that prime suspect Ayan Sil had collected Rs 40 crore from ineligible candidates and distributed Rs 30 crore to chairpersons of several municipalities, municipal officials and influential persons. Sil told investigators that municipality councillors had a quota for referring candidates in lieu of money.
In the charge sheet, the agency claimed that nearly 1,200 candidates had been appointed in municipalities like Kamarhati, Titagarh, Baranagar, South Dumdum and Madhyamgram through this network. Sil charged each candidate between Rs 3 lakh and Rs 5 lakh. Over the years, he collected Rs 40 crore and got ineligible candidates selected by manipulating OMR sheets.
ED alleged that after collecting money from candidates through one Devesh Chakraborty, he instructed them to keep the OMR sheet blank. The OMR sheet was later filled in his office. Correct answers of aspirants who scored better were made wrong by double circling on the OMR sheets or cancelling their candidature.
Sil's lawyer Sanjib Dan said: "We are yet to go through the details of the charge sheet."