EB coach held on graft charges

KOLKATA, Dec 2: East Bengal coach Subhas Bhowmick was caught red-handed on Friday by CBI sleuths for taking bribe from a city-based businessman. Bhowmick, a superintendent in central excise, had apparently invited the businessman to the South Club and offered him some favours in return for a Rs 1.5 lakh payoff. Soon after the money changed hands, CBI anti-corruption units sleuths, who were lurking in the vicinity of the club in plainclothes following a tip-off, pounced on Bhowmick and caught him.
Bhowmick resisted and in the ensuing scuffle Additional SP SR Majumdar, who was leading the CBI team, was injured.
The former international was then taken to Nizam Palace, the CBI headquarters in the city.
It is learnt that Bhowmick has been charged under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. If convicted, he faces seven years in jail. Bhowmick is likely to be shifted to Lalbazar's central lock-up later in the night and on Saturday, he will be produced in the Alipore court. Bhowmick's adventurous ways are not new, nor are his brushes with the police.
He was once caught gallivanting with an actress in a hotel from where the police picked him up.
After a long hiatus, Bhowmick returned to the maidan as East Bengal coach in 1999. Following initial reverses, he earned unprecedented success both at home as well as abroad. But since last year, his team has been on the decline. Just before leaving for the Durand Cup, two of his players Shasthi Duley and Dipankar Roy were arrested for their alleged links with a dreaded criminal.
East Bengal club, meanwhile, is yet to react officially to their coach's arrest.