New Delhi, May 26 (). The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the Calcutta High Court’s direction allowing CBI and ED probe against Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee in the multi-crore school recruitment scam in West Bengal.
Justice J.K. Maheshwari and P.S. Narasimha said that the court was not inclined to interfere as far as the investigation was concerned.
The bench, however, stayed the High Court order imposing a fine of Rs 25 lakh on the national general secretary of the party.
Representing the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju said that the order of the High Court only said that if you want to investigate, and from that order the investigating agency has the power to investigate independently.
Raju said, that power is unlimited and it cannot be taken away.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Banerjee, said his client was making a speech and had nothing to do with the matter. He did not mention any judge in the speech.
Singhvi further argued that a direction has been given that they should be probed and said that he would point out the errors in the order.
The bench said it would list the matter after summer vacations and agreed to stay the damages.
The top court has listed the matter for next hearing in the second week of July.
Singhvi had told the apex court on May 22 that Banerjee was being called for questioning while he was out of the state for campaigning. He had urged the court for early listing of the matter.
The bench had on Friday agreed to probe the matter.
A single bench of Justice Amrita Sinha of the Calcutta High Court had on May 18 upheld the previous order of a bench of Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay of the same court, which had empowered central agencies to interrogate Banerjee.
Justice Sinha also granted the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the ED the right to interrogate the accused in the case and exonerated Youth Trinamool Congress leader Kuntal Ghosh in connection with the latter’s allegations, accusing the agencies of naming Banerjee in the case. was accused of pressuring
Justice Sinha also imposed a fine of Rs 25 lakh each on Banerjee and Ghosh.
Originally, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay had given the central agencies the authority to interrogate Banerjee.
After this he approached the Supreme Court in this matter. After the order of the Supreme Court, the cases related to the case were transferred to the bench of Justice Amrita Sinha.
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