The Hooghly engineer bribery case has widened after the West Bengal Police Anti-Corruption Branch seized 73 documents from the Chinsurah home of arrested Hooghly Zilla Parishad sub-assistant engineer Suman Das and began examining family assets estimated at Rs 1.32 crore. Investigators said the value of the family’s property and investments had increased significantly over the past five years, although they have not disclosed how the increase took place.
Das was arrested on allegations that he sought bribes from contractors in return for helping them secure government work. The Anti-Corruption Branch searched his home in Chinsurah on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the report by Anandabazar – West Bengal. The seized papers relate to property and investments and are now being examined as part of the financial investigation.
Investigators have not yet presented the reported asset value as proof of illegal income. Their stated focus is to establish the source and movement of the family’s money and determine how the assets accumulated over the period under examination. The agency said the financial records of Das and his family were being scrutinised in greater detail.
The case began after a contractor from Polba alleged that Das had demanded a bribe. The contractor had received a government road construction project under a panchayat scheme, with a value of about Rs 1 crore. The work order was issued in 2023 and the project was completed towards the end of 2025, according to the report.
The contractor allegedly told investigators that money deposited for the tender had not been returned. On the basis of the complaint, Anti-Corruption Branch officers arranged an operation to catch Das. A person acting on behalf of the agency sent Rs 20,000 to the engineer as purported bribe money. The notes had been treated with a special chemical to help establish contact with the cash.
After the payment, officers asked Das to wash his hands. The water reportedly turned violet, which the investigators treated as evidence that he had handled the chemically treated notes. He was questioned and arrested at the spot. The allegations remain subject to the investigation and the legal process.
The case places the scrutiny of local public works contracts alongside the financial investigation. Panchayat-linked road projects involve public money, contractors and officials responsible for administrative and technical processes. Any alleged demand for payment in connection with such work can affect both the integrity of tendering and the ability of contractors to receive dues after completing projects.
The Anti-Corruption Branch has not announced a final finding on the source of the family’s assets or indicated whether further arrests will follow. Its next stated step is to complete the detailed examination of the seized documents and the financial records connected with Das and his family.
