West Bengal Sets Up Judicial Commission to Probe Corruption Allegations Under Previous Government
The West Bengal government has established a judicial commission to investigate allegations of institutional corruption and financial irregularities across multiple government departments during the 15-year rule of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), which ended in May 2026.
According to a notification from the Home and Hill Affairs Department, the commission will be headed by retired Calcutta High Court judge Justice Biswajit Basu. It will also include a senior IPS officer, an IAS officer or a West Bengal Civil Service officer, and a West Bengal Revenue Service officer.
The panel's mandate covers the period from 2011 to May 2026, examining corruption in departments including Education, Food and Supplies, Relief and Disaster Management, Municipal Affairs, Panchayats, Housing, Fisheries, Industry, Land, and Public Works. The notification cited “widespread public concern about incidents of institutional corruption.”
Specific allegations to be investigated include large-scale bribery, corruption in Cyclone Amphan relief distribution, misuse of funds under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, and irregularities in the midday meal scheme.
The state government informed the Governor of the need for an independent judicial commission, stating: “In view of the gravity of the situation, it has been conveyed to the Governor that it is necessary to appoint an independent judicial commission of inquiry to look into and examine such instances of institutional corruption and financial irregularities.”
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari approved the formation of the panel during a cabinet meeting on May 18. Since the Bharatiya Janata Party formed the government after the recent assembly election, hundreds of TMC leaders, including MLAs, former ministers, and councillors, have been arrested by state police and other agencies for alleged corruption and extortion.
The commission is empowered to submit periodic reports to the state government and recommend registration of FIRs by competent police authorities where irregularities are detected. It can also recover misappropriated funds, including through attachment of property, if it believes such property was acquired through acts resulting in institutional corruption.
