‘Violation of Law’: Bengal Tells SC In Plea Challenging HC’s ‘Transfer Sandeshkhali Case To CBI’ Order

Hygemsta

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posted on 9 months ago — updated on 1 second ago

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The government also said that the ruling cast "unsubstantiated aspersions" on the state's investigating agency by directing transfer of probe to the CBI

The West Bengal government told the Supreme Court that the transfer of investigation in the Sandeshkhali case to the CBI in a “cursory manner” violates the law laid down by the apex court.

The government on Tuesday moved the apex court challenging the Calcutta High Court’s order to hand over papers and former TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan to the CBI by 4:30 pm on Tuesday. In its plea, accessed by CNN-News18, the government said the Calcutta High Court’s order violates the state’s right to judicial review of the ruling.

The government also said that the order cast “unsubstantiated aspersions” on the state’s investigating agency by directing the transfer of the probe to the CBI.

The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday transferred the probe into the January 5 attack on financial probe agency Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in West Bengal’s Sandeshkhali by a mob of jailed and suspended Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Shahjahan Sheikh’s supporters to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The court had directed the police to transfer custody of Shahjahan, as well as case materials, by 4.30 pm to CBI. At 7.30 pm a CBI team left the police HQ in Kolkata empty-handed.

Observing that a fair, honest and complete investigation is required and this alone will retain the public confidence in the impartial working of the state agencies, the High Court said that it has no hesitation in its mind to hold that this confidence has been shaken in connection with this case. “There can be no better case than the case on hand which requires to be transferred to be investigated by CBI,” the division bench observed.

However, the West Bengal Police’s CID on Tuesday refused to hand over Shahjahan Sheikh to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), saying that the matter is pending before the Supreme Court.

The Central agency officers had to wait for over 2 hours at the CID office for the transfer of documents. However, the West Bengal government denied the request.

Shahjahan Sheikh, the prime accused in the Sandeshkhali violence case, was arrested by the West Bengal police on February 29 a day after the high court ordered that Sheikh can be arrested by the CBI, the ED or the police.