Suvendu Adhikari Sets November 30 Deadline for Ineligible Housing Beneficiaries to Return Funds; Orders CID Probe

PTI, Nov 13, 2026, Kolkata: Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday set November 30 as the deadline for ineligible beneficiaries of the state's rural housing scheme to return funds received in violation of eligibility norms, warning of stringent legal action against those who fail to comply.

Adhikari also ordered a CID probe, by constituting a Special Investigation Team (SIT), into 57,000 suspected fictitious beneficiaries detected during a field verification exercise, alleging large-scale irregularities in the disbursement of public funds.

Addressing a press conference at the state secretariat Nabanna, the Chief Minister said government officials found to have facilitated the irregularities would also face strict action, including departmental proceedings.

"As stated by Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal, 57,000 fake beneficiaries had applied illegally under the previous government's Banglar Bari project and were delisted. We have already identified 12,000 among them who received the money and have asked them to return the amount. While 1,000 have returned the money, I ask the rest to do the same by the end of this month," he said.

"You must return the money by November 30 and spare yourselves possible legal complications. We will not allow you to retain this money. You have to return it because you are not eligible beneficiaries," the CM added.

The more serious concern, however, was the detection of suspected fictitious beneficiaries, whose actual existence could not be established during the field verification, the Chief Minister said.

There were allegations that fraudulent bank accounts had been opened in the names of deceased or relocated individuals to siphon off government assistance.

"There will be legal action against these 57,000 cases. We have to find out how Rs 60,000 of public money reached each of their accounts," Adhikari said.

According to the Chief Minister, the CID will investigate who had recommended these names for inclusion in the beneficiary list and whether officials at different levels of the administration had facilitated the alleged fraud. An SIT would be constituted to oversee the investigation, Adhikari said.

"Officials who facilitated these beneficiaries in fraudulently obtaining monetary assistance will be identified and action will be taken against them," he said.

"Besides constituting a committee headed by retired judge Biswajit Basu to examine corruption and the misuse of public funds across different levels of the state administration, we have reactivated the state Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB), which he said had remained largely inactive for a prolonged period," the CM added.

The announcements came as the state government disbursed the second instalment of financial assistance under its 'West Bengal Awas' scheme, transferring Rs 4,201.026 crore through RTGS to the bank accounts of 7,00,171 beneficiaries across the state.