KOLKATA: The cut money rage has reached one of the correctional homes in the state as Bangladeshi inmates lodged in Balurghat jail wrote a letter to the director-general (DG) of correctional home services accusing a section of jail employees of taking cut money for providing legitimate items.
The DG ordered a high-level probe into the issue.
According to sources in the correctional home services department, the prisoners alleged some of the jail employees charge five times higher price compared to the market rate for giving them permissible items.
“Any inmate’s relatives can deposit cash with the jail authority, which is kept under the category of ‘personal cash’ in the record-book. Sometimes, prisoners apply for items like medicines and soaps which are not available with the authorities. The designated jail employees buy the items using the amount deposited in the ‘personal cash’ account after the jail authorities give a nod,’’ said an official of correctional home services department.
In the complaint, the inmates accused the jail employees responsible for handling the ‘personal cash’ fund of collecting cut money for giving them the items which were allowed by the jail authorities.
The DG asked an officer of the additional inspector general of deputy inspector general rank to conduct a probe into the allegation and submit a report.
The BJP’s local unit came to know about the incident after Majhi told a local leader of the saffron camp that he was taken in front of the house last year and photographs were taken.
The representatives from the local gram panchayat visited the house and wrote the name of the beneficiary on the walls of it.
TMC workers return home to a labourer
A house that was granted to a daily wage earner under Bangla Awas Yojona in East Burdwan was usurped by TMC workers and was converted into a party office.
On Wednesday, TMC handed over the keys of the house to Shankar Majhi, the beneficiary, fearing a mass agitation.
The house was constructed at Jamalpur and Trinamool’s local workers had been using it as their party office.