TMC leaders: before and after arrest

Two chit fund scams, Saradha and Rose Valley, have been a constant source of discomfort for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress.

Since 2016, three senior TMC leaders, including a former cabinet minister, have been arrested by the CBI in relation to the chit fund cases.

Even as all of them are currently out on bail, the development has left an indelible mark on their political careers.

The TMC was in for a shock when the CBI arrested the then transport minister, and a close aide of Mamata, Madan Mitra for his alleged involvement in the Saradha chit fund scam on December 12, 2014.

According to the CBI, he was arrested for misappropriation of funds, cheating and criminal conspiracy. Mitra was arrested in connection with a case lodged against Saradha Realty, a company of the Saradha Group.

Mitra was granted bail after spending at least 21 months in jail. Today he is on the fringes of the party and has been cold-shouldered by the chief minister. He had to step down as transport minister and also lost in the 2016 Assembly election.

The second heavyweight TMC leader arrested by the CBI in the chit fund scams was the Sudip Bandyopadhyay, TMC leader in the Lok Sabha.

He was arrested in relation to the Rose Valley chit fund scam on January 3, 2017. An outraged Mamata had termed the arrest "political vendetta".

Soon after the arrest, TMC workers held large-scale protests across the state and even tried to barge into the state BJP headquarters in Kolkata and resorted to stone pelting.

He was released on bail on May 20, 2017, and was hospitalised for several days upon his return to Kolkata as his health had deteriorated severely.

Although he continues to be the TMC leader in the Lok Sabha, Bandyopadhyay is barely active in state politics and spends little time in Kolkata.

Another TMC MP, Tapas Pal, was also arrested by the CBI in relation to the Rose Valley chit fund scam. The actor-turned-politician used to be known more for his controversial remarks than his political acumen.

He was arrested by the CBI on December 30, 2016. After spending more than a year in jail, Pal was released on bail on February 2, 2018. Since then, he had maintained a low profile and has stayed out of media glare.