The Calcutta High Court granted bail to Partha Chatterjee, a former West Bengal minister and Trinamool Congress Member of Legislative Assembly, in the multi-crore teacher recruitment scam case today, Friday, September 26.

While granting bail, Justice Suvra Ghosh directed Chatterjee to surrender his passport and remain under the jurisdiction of the trial court, PTI reports.

He has also been forbidden from holding public office while the trial is ongoing.

Chatterjee is accused of causing massive irregularities in the recruitment of teachers and non-teaching staff at government schools, including the appointment of unqualified candidates to key positions.

It was also suspected that certain people who were employed in teaching and non-teaching roles paid bribes ranging from Rs 5-15 lakh to secure the jobs despite failing the selection tests.

The case comes from petitions made by rejected Teachers' Eligibility Test (TET) candidates.

Following this, the High Court ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation on June 8, 2022. The CBI filed an FIR the next day, and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) followed suit on June 24, 2022.

Chatterjee has been a member of West Bengal's legislative assembly since 2001, and he served as the state's minister between 2011 and 2022. He has held the education portfolio since 2016.