KOLKATA: Detectives of West Bengal's Crime Investigation Department (CID) who are sniffing for an adoption scam in two homes run by school teacher Chandana Chakrabory in Jaipaiguri were astounded to find records indicating that a third centre run by her, a shelter for minor children, could be involved in trafficking.
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The authorites have so far found that Chakraborty's homes trafficked at least 30-40 very young children from West Bengal to different parts of the country and abroad. They are investigating whether it was an adoption racket facilitated by a BJP functionary Juhee Choudhury with connections in North Block in New Delhi.
But on Wednesday night, when CID detectives raided a third facility run by Chakraborty in Devnagar locality of Jalpaiguri in north Bengal, they found nine minor girls whose names were in the register were missing from the premises. Further, of the six minor girls who were rescued from the centre, two were found to be pregnant. The two pregnant girls have been shifted to Jalpaiguri Sadar hospital.
The rescue of the pregnant girls and the missing girls has given rise to speculation that besides child trafficking, Chandana Chakraborty may also be involved in trafficking of women.
The district magistrate of Jalpaiguri, Rachna Bhagat has said that the register kept at the Devnagar home listed 30 inmates but only 21 were present. Nine girls were missing. Also, it was found that several of the names were repeated, which gave rise to suspicion that many more girls may be missing from the home.
Meanwhile, the district's child protection officer Shashmita Ghosh has given a written reply to a showcause notice sent by district magistrate Bhagat. On the other hand, Chandana Chakraborty has been suspended from the primary school where she worked as a teacher. CID officials said that from 2006 to 2017, more than 100 children were adopted by Chandana Chankraborty's shelters in Jalpaiguri district. Her financial transactions are being scanned by CID to look into big transactions within the country and abroad.
BJP Mahila Morcha gen sec Juhee Chowdhury's links with Chandana Chakraborty have left the BJP divided in Bengal. While the women's wing president Roopa Ganguly has stood by Choudhury -- who is not to be seen in public -- while BJP state president Dileep Ghosh is cautious. While Roopa Ganguly says it was Dileep Ghosh who signed Juhee's appointment as Mahila Morcha gen sec, Ghosh says he was completely unaware of Juhee's past.