Cash-for-jobs case: Calcutta HC grants interim bail to prime accused Sujay Krishna Bhadra

Kolkata: A division bench of the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday granted interim bail to Sujay Krishna Bhadra, one of the prime accused in the multi-crore cash-for-school job case in Bengal.

The division bench, comprising Justices Arijit Banerjee and Apurba Sinha Roy, granted bail to Bhadra in a case registered by the CBI. Bhadra was arrested by both ED and CBI in connection with the case. The interim bail will stay in force till March-end this year. The next hearing has been scheduled for March 20.

Bhadra is known as “Kalighater Kaku” in political circles due to his proximity with the Trinamool top leadership.


The division bench observed that the medical reports suggest that Bhadra needs medical treatment and hence the bail was given on humanitarian grounds. However, the interim bail comes with certain restrictions, including Bhadra being kept under watch, possibly by the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).

Earlier, the HC had granted bail to him in a case registered by the ED. However, Bhadra was not released from prison as he was in custody in a case related to the CBI. Now, he can come out of prison.

The trial process in the ED-registered case against Bhadra at a special court of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act ((PMLA) in Kolkata has already started this month.

Both CBI and ED managed to get the voice samples of Bhadra after several failed attempts.