The central agency took Sujit Bose (63) into custody under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after his day-long questioning at its CGO Complex office in Salt Lake in Kolkata.
Updated: May 12, 2026 8:24 AM IST
New Delhi: In a significant development, the Enforcement Directorate arrested former West Bengal minister and Trinamool Congress leader Sujit Bose on Monday night in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged municipality recruitment scam in the state. The central agency took Sujit Bose (63) into custody under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after his day-long questioning at its CGO Complex office in Salt Lake in Kolkata.
It is important to note that Sujit Bose’s was the first major arrest of a TMC leader since the Suvendu Adhikari-led BJP government took charge of the state’s administration on Saturday. Officials claimed the politician was “evasive” in his replies, often “inconsistent”, and was hence arrested. Bose will be produced before a special PMLA court here on Tuesday, where the ED will seek his custody for detailed interrogation, they said.
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Who is Sujit Bose?
- Sujit Bose is a senior Trinamool Congress leader and a former West Bengal minister.
- He is a three-time sitting MLA from Bidhannagar
- In the 2026 Assembly elections, Sujit Bose lost against the BJP’s Sharadwat Mukherjee by a margin of more than 37,000 votes.
- Sujit Bose started as a leader of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), the CPI(M)’s youth wing.
- He rose to become a close aide of communist veteran and former minister Subhash Chakraborty.
- By the late 1990s, the two parted ways and later he joined the TMC in 2001.
- He contested his first Assembly election against Chakraborty from Belgachia East five years later.
- Bose lost to his one-time mentor.
- In 2009, Bose contested the bypoll against the CPI(M) veteran Subhash Chakraborty’s wife Ramala.
- Bose won and entered the assembly for the first time. He won two subsequent elections and was also appointed minister.
- Bose, known a TMC heavyweight in Kolkata, was particularly credited for organising one of city’s biggest Durga Pujas at Sreebhumi Sporting Club in the Lake Town area.
What Happened on May 11?
On Monday, Sujit Bose, accompanied by his son Samudra Bose, reached the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office around 10.30 am. Bose, ED sources said, was questioned in connection with the recruitment irregularities at the Dakshin Dum Dum municipality, which allegedly served as the venue for one of the biggest civic body recruitment scams in the state, where he previously served as vice chairman.
The civic body scam investigation in Bengal pertains to alleged irregularities in the recruitment of labourers, sweepers, clerks, peons, ambulance attendants, pump operators, helpers, sanitary assistants and drivers, etc, at several municipalities in the state, including South Dum Dum.
Sleuths said Bose is suspected to have played a direct role in providing jobs to about 150 employees across various categories in the municipality, recommending them for the positions, in lieu of pecuniary benefits.
The agency claimed it has traced “proceeds of crime” in the form of flats acquired by him in exchange for providing municipality jobs to various persons. The ED has also traced cash deposits in the bank accounts “under the control” of Bose, as per ED officials.
Confronted with statements of the previously arrested scam suspects, bank transactions and other documents, Bose was unable to come up with satisfactory replies, agency sources said.
