Bengal school jobs scam accused Sujay Krishna Bhadra arrested by ED
Kolkata (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Sujay Krishna Bhadra for his alleged involvement in the illegal appointments made in different state-run and aided schools in West Bengal, an official said.
Bhadra, popularly known as "Kalighat er Kaku" (Uncle from Kalighat), was arrested on Tuesday night following a 12-hour-long grilling at the ED's office here in connection with their ongoing investigation into the scam.
"He did not cooperate with our officers during the questioning. We tried a lot to get answers to some relevant questions connected to the jobs scam," an ED official told PTI over the phone.
Bhadra appeared before the ED after he was notified by the central investigating agency last week.
He had earlier appeared a couple of times before the CBI, which is also running a parallel investigation into the recruitment scam.
The Trinamool Congress declined to react to the arrest but wondered whether the arrest was a part of diverting attention from the political narrative of lone Congress MLA Bayron Biswas joining the TMC.
"Yesterday, lone Congress MLA Bayron Biswas had joined the TMC. The joining had led to panic in the opposition camp of BJP, CPI(M) and Congress. Maybe this arrest was made to divert attention from that narrative," TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said.
The BJP, however, said this is the most significant arrest in the School Service Commission (SSC) scam so far.
"This is the most significant arrest in the SSC scam so far. The law is finally inching closer to nabbing the mastermind and the biggest beneficiaries. The list of TMC leaders involved in corruption is long," state BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.
State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, too, said the day is not far when "top TMC leaders will be behind bars".
The ED has so far arrested West Bengal's former education minister Partha Chatterjee, his friend, and several top education department officials for their alleged involvement in the multi-crore scam.
The CBI has also arrested TMC MLAs Jiban Krishna Saha and Manik Bhattacharya in connection with the investigation. Bhattacharya is a former president of the West Bengal Board of Primary Education.
The TMC has suspended Chatterjee from the party and sacked him from the state cabinet. The party is, however, yet to take any action against Bhattacharya.
The CBI and the ED are investigating the case and the alleged money trail involved in it on court orders.
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Canadian report finds 'no definitive link' between Nijjar killing and India
Ottawa, Jan 29 (PTI): A Canada commission report has said that "no definitive link" with a "foreign state" in the killing of Canadian Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was "proven", smashing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s allegations that accused the involvement of Indian agents in the killing.
In September 2023, Trudeau said Canada had credible evidence that agents of the Indian government were involved in the murder of Nijjar in British Columbia in June 2023.
The report titled "Public Inquiry Into Foreign Interference in Federal Electoral Processes and Democratic Institutions' was released on Tuesday.
In the report commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue said "Disinformation is used as a retaliatory tactic to punish decisions that run contrary to a state's interests."
The report has suggested India spread disinformation on the killing of Nijjar.
"This may have been the case with a disinformation campaign that followed the Prime Minister's announcement regarding suspected Indian involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar (though again no definitive link to a foreign state could be proven)," the report said.
Nijjar was gunned down in Surrey, British Columbia, in June 2023.
The 123-page report also talked of expelling six Indian diplomats.
"In October 2024, Canada expelled six Indian diplomats and consular officials in reaction to a targeted campaign against Canadian citizens by agents linked to the Government of India," it said.
However, India expelled six Canadian diplomats and announced the withdrawal of its high commissioner.
The relations between India and Canada came under severe strain following Prime Minister Trudeau's allegations in September last year of the "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Nijjar.
New Delhi had rejected Trudeau's charges as "absurd".
India has repeatedly criticised Trudeau's government for being soft on supporters of the Khalistan movement who live in Canada. The Khalistan movement is banned in India but has support among the Sikh diaspora, particularly in Canada.
On Tuesday, India strongly rejected "insinuations" made against it in the report by a Canadian commission that investigated allegations that certain foreign governments were meddling in Canada's elections.
In a strong reaction, the MEA in New Delhi said it rejects the report's "insinuations" on India.
It is in fact Canada which has been "consistently interfering" in India's internal affairs, it said.
