Arrested Trinamool MLA from Murshidabad’s Burwan, Jiban Krishna Saha, allegedly parked crores of money, which he reportedly collected from teaching job aspirants, in immovable assets, including land, and registered those properties in the names of his close relatives, senior officers of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Tuesday.

The ED, which rounded up Saha on Monday for his alleged involvement in irregularities in appointments in state-aided schools, alleged that the 48-year-old legislator had purchased these properties through cash transactions.

The investigators said they identified at least four such close relatives of Saha in whose names the properties were registered. Sources said their IT returns over the last five years were being scanned to trace the source of money used to purchase these properties.

The ED has summoned Tagori, Saha’s wife, and his aunt Maya Saha for questioning.

On Monday, separate ED teams had conducted searches in multiple locations at the residences of Saha’s in-laws in Murshidabad and the house of his aunt Maya, a Trinamool councillor in Birbhum district.

“The probe against the arrested MLA centres around illegal parking of the proceeds of crime under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and identifying the beneficiaries,” a senior ED officer said. “We will question several persons over the next few days as a part of our probe to find out the alleged links between them and Saha.”

Producing Saha before a city court on Monday, the ED alleged that he collected ₹46 lakh from at least seven candidates who wrote the selection test in 2016. The amounts ranged between ₹1 lakh and ₹12 lakh. Investigations revealed that out of this amount, ₹26 lakh was transferred to his wife’s bank account in September and December 2020.

Saha, who won the Burwan seat as a Trinamool candidate in 2012, defeating Amiya Kumar Das of the BJP by a margin of over 2,500 votes, has said he made some properties from his own savings. Biswanath Saha, his father, had gifted him some property, the MLA claimed.

Biswanath said that a bulk of his son’s properties were made from money that was sourced illegally. He said he warned Jiban on several occasions, but things came to a pass when he had to leave the house.

“I want him to be punished for his misdeed,” Biswanath said.

Jiban and his father share a strained relationship and some of the MLA’s family members said it was not unusual for Biswanth to speak against Jiban.

A section of ED investigators alleged that Jiban Saha became an agent for identifying targets and collecting money, promising them assured jobs in state-aided schools even before he became a legislator.

After Saha was elected from Burwan, he formed a team who would do these jobs on his behalf, the investigators claimed.

Saha’s counsel told the court on Monday that his client cooperated with the investigating agency by responding to summons on three occasions. Even his wife had faced the ED.

“We are not pressing for his bail but release from the case,” Saha’s counsel told the court.

The court turned down the plea and remanded the MLA to ED custody for six days.

The BJP on Tuesday upped its attack against the arrested Trinamool MLA. Suvendu Adhikari, the Opposition leader, held a picture of Saha sharing space with a clutch of top Trinamool names and said it was taken during a meeting held on August 12.

“Jiban collected money. He kept some for himself. The bigger chunk of the money was diverted, and the picture tells where,” Adhikari alleged.

Trinamool dismissed Adhikari’s charges as politically motivated.

“Sharing a photograph (of Saha with top Trinamool leaders) proves nothing. Wanted individuals like Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya have photos with a clutch of top BJP leaders. Does it mean the BJP leaders took their share from the loot?” Trinamool spokesperson Arup Chakraborty said.