Mamata Banerjee's niece, who lost job in alleged teacher-recruitment scam, found dead at home in Birbhum; details here

BRISTY Mukherjee, the 28-year-old niece of former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, was reportedly found dead in Birbhum, Rampurhat, on Tuesday. According to news agency PTI, Mukherjee was found hanging at her residence in the village.

Bristy Mukherjee was among the 26,000 teaching and non-teaching staff who lost their jobs following the teacher-recruitment probe for allegedly “illegally” obtaining their employment. Mukherjee was posted as a non-teaching staff member in Bolpur’s Upper Primary School.

Reportedly, Bristy Mukherjee's name appeared in the 608th position in the list of candidates who were sacked after the high court's order, which was also upheld by the Supreme Court.

According to a report by The Telegraph, Bristy Mukherjee was depressed following the court's verdict in the alleged teacher recruitment scam case. It is reported by the family that she was undergoing treatment for it.

A native of Birbhum’s Kusumba village, Mukherjee's father, Nihar Mukherjee, is a maternal cousin of Mamata Banerjee. He is also a local leader of the Trinamool Congress.

Police probe underway

Bristi Mukherjee's body was recovered from a room on the second floor of her house at Kusumba, Rampurhat area this afternoon, a senior officer said.

The body was sent for a post-mortem examination. An investigation into her death is underway. “The circumstances leading to the death will be established after the post-mortem and other procedural inquiries,” PTI quoted an official as saying.

West Bengal SSC scam explained

Reportedly, the deceased was among the ones who secured their employment “illegally”, either through favouritism or through alleged exchange of cash, in the 2016 State Level Selection Test conducted by the West Bengal School Service Commission. The West Bengal SSC scam was one of the major corruption cases during the 15-year rule of Mamata Banerjee's TMC in the state.

In connection with the case, former Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee and another TMC MLA were arrested. Names of senior officials of the school service commission and the education board also emerged in the chargesheet during the investigation.

The Supreme Court had earlier set 31 December as the deadline to accommodate “qualified” teaching and non-teaching staff who had secured their appointments without any “unfair” means. Recently, the apex court extended the deadline to 31 May.

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