The Supreme Court on Friday granted conditional future bail to former West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee in a money laundering case related to the cash-for-job scam.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan said that Chatterjee shall be released on February 1, 2025 subject to the trial court framing charges before the winter vacation and examination of vulnerable witnesses by the second and third week of January 2025.

The top court said upon his release Chatterjee shall not hold any public office but can continue as MLA.

The bench said that a suspect cannot be detained indefinitely and, therefore, it has to balance the rights of the accused and the victims.

On December 4, the top court had reserved its verdict on his bail plea and told him that, "On the face of it you are a corrupt person. Crores of rupees were recovered from your premises." The top court in October issued a notice to the ED on the appeal filed by Chatterjee against an April 30 Calcutta High Court order denying him a bail on the grounds that a prima facie case was established against him under the PMLA.

Chatterjee was arrested in connection with the alleged irregularities in recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided primary schools.

The politician and his alleged close aide Arpita Mukherjee were arrested by the ED in connection with its probe into the money trail in the alleged illegal recruitments.

The ED claimed to have recovered Rs 49.80 crore in cash, apart from jewellery, gold bars from flats owned by Mukherjee, besides documents of properties and a company in joint holdings. PTI MNL MNL DV DV