Kolkata, Oct 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) The former panchayat head of the Trinamool Congress in Charghat Panchayat of Swarupnagar in North 24 Parganas district has been arrested on charges of financial fraud in the name of providing jobs, police said on Monday.
Her husband, Nikhil Ranjan Biswas, was earlier arrested on the same charge.
The arrest came after the allegedly defrauded persons approached Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari with complaints against the couple.
Police identified the arrested person as Basanti Biswas.
Several complaints were filed against her at the local police station after the change of government in the state. The main allegations relate to extortion and financial fraud.
It is alleged that during the Trinamool Congress regime, Basanti and her husband Nikhil took huge sums of money from several people, including Swarupnagar resident Mazar Ali.
In return, they allegedly promised to provide each of them with a government job.
The complainants said they paid several lakhs of rupees in 2023, but no jobs were provided.
They later sought the return of their money, but it did not happen. The Biswas couple allegedly threatened them when they demanded a refund.
The complainants said they had raised the issue earlier, but Basanti escaped action because her own party was in power then.
After the change of government, several people, including complainant Mazar Ali, approached the Chief Minister’s public hearing seeking justice.
The Chief Minister heard the matter and instructed the administration to act.
Nikhil was arrested on September 12 and remains in judicial custody. His wife, Basanti, was arrested on Monday.
According to the police, she will be produced before the Basirhat Sub-Divisional Court.
After Basanti's arrest, complainant Mazar Ali said she had been an ICDS employee and later became Trinamool Panchayat Pradhan. He alleged that she amassed assets worth crores of rupees and took money from unemployed youths in the name of providing jobs.
“They should get the punishment they deserve. The Chief Minister has responded to our appeal. There are a few more people involved in this fraud ring. Hopefully, they will also be arrested soon,” Ali said.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Brindaban Sarkar said that Basanti Biswas’ arrest had sent a clear message to residents.
“After the arrest of former Trinamool Panchayat Pradhan Basanti Biswas, it is clear to the locals that this government will not tolerate corruption. Whether the corruption was in the past or now, the guilty will be punished,” he said.
Source: IANS
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