Trinamool Congress MLA named in school job case dies of brain stroke in Kolkata

Kolkata, May 15 (IANS) Trinamool Congress legislator from Tehatta Assembly constituency in Nadia district of West Bengal, Tapas Kumar Saha, who was named in the cash-for-school job case, died at a hospital in Kolkata on Thursday morning.

Tapas Kumar Saha suffered from a brain stroke in his sleep at his residence at Tehatta on Wednesday. Thereafter, he was promptly shifted to Kolkata and admitted to a private hospital in the city. He died at the same hospital on Thursday morning, at the age of 65.

Tapas Kumar Saha was a two-time Trinamool Congress legislator. From 2016 to 2021, he was an elected party MLA from Nakashipara Assembly constituency also in Nadia district. However, in 2021, the party nominated him from the Tehatta Assembly constituency and he won from there.

Trinamool Congress insiders said that Saha was not in the best of health for the last few months, and he recently went to Bengaluru for a few days to undergo treatment for some ailments.

“He was depressed ever since his name came up in the school-job case,” said a party leader from Nadia district who was close to Saha.

In April 2023, the sleuths of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted a raid and search operation at Saha’s residence at Tehatta in connection with the school job case.

He was also summoned for interrogation at the CBI’s Nizam Palace office in central Kolkata during the investigation.

The CBI accused him of accepting cash from several candidates in the district with promises of getting them school jobs.

However, his relationships with the Trinamool Congress was not always smooth.

In 2011, the party denied him the ticket from Tehatta Assembly constituency which he had strongly urged the party to give him. After that he remained suspended from the party for quite some time.

However, his suspension was revoked, and in the 2016 West Bengal Assembly elections, Trinamool Congress nominated him as the candidate but from the Palashipara constituency in the same district.

He got elected and then again in 2021, the party nominated him, but this time from Tehatta and Saha got elected yet again.

--IANS

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