Mamata Banerjee's niece found hanging
What's the story
Brishti Mukherjee, the 28-year-old niece of former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was found dead at her home in Kusumba village under Rampurhat police station area of Birbhum on Tuesday morning. She was allegedly found hanging at her residence in a room on the second floor of her house. The police have launched an investigation into the incident and are awaiting a post-mortem report to determine the cause of death.
Job controversy
Mukherjee's alleged involvement in teacher recruitment scam
Mukherjee had earlier made headlines for her alleged involvement in the primary teacher recruitment scam.
She was among nearly 26,000 teaching and non-teaching staff who were sacked for allegedly getting jobs "illegally" through favoritism and cash exchange.
The Calcutta High Court and later the Supreme Court upheld these terminations.
The Supreme Court had earlier set a deadline of December 31 to accommodate "qualified" staff members who got jobs without "unfair" means but extended it to May 31, 2027, on Monday.
Family statement
Family claims she had resigned due to health reasons
Sources told the Telegraph India that Brishti had been depressed since the court verdict.
Mukherjee's family has claimed that she had resigned from her job after working for one day due to health reasons.
Other reports say she was embroiled in a divorce case with her husband.
Her father, Nihar Mukherjee, is a local Trinamool Congress leader and Mamata Banerjee's maternal cousin.