School jobs scam SC stays Calcutta HC order asking CBI ED to interrogate TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee

    New Delhi, Apr 17 (PTI) In a major relief to TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee, the Supreme Court on Monday stayed the Calcutta High Court's April 13 order directing the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate to interrogate him and Kuntal Ghosh, an accused in the school jobs-for-bribes case, and file a report based on that.
     A single judge bench of the Calcutta High Court had also directed the West Bengal police not to lodge any FIR against CBI and Enforcement Directorate officers probing the alleged scam.
     Taking the plea of the TMC leader for hearing urgently, a bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said, “List the petition on April 24, 2023. Till the next date of listing, there shall be a stay of all the directions against the petitioner (Banerjee) in pursuance to the directions contained in the impugned order of the single judge bench of the high court on April 13.”
     The high court had taken note of the public speech of Abhishek Banerjee, a nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in which he had purportedly said that Ghosh, an accused in the case, was being pressured by the central probe agencies to name him in the case.
     Senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for the Banerjee, referred to an interview given by the high court judge to a news channel and alleged that some statements he made were against Banerjee.
     Singhvi also referred to the high court order which said no police station in the state shall lodge any FIR against the CBI and ED officers probing the recruitment scam.
     The apex court bench, also comprising Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, took note of the submissions of Singhvi and stayed the operation of the HC order till April 24.
     It took note of Singhvi's contention that the direction of the high court was “wholly extraneous to the relief which were sought in the petition” and, moreover, Banerjee was not even made a party there.
     The Calcutta High Court had on April 13 passed a slew of directions asking the police not to lodge FIRs on complaints against officers of the CBI or the ED who are investigating the alleged recruitment scam related to the West Bengal Central School Service Commission and the West Bengal Board of Primary Education without its permission.
     It had asked the central agencies to probe the role of Banerjee saying such an "interrogation should be made soon".
     The high court was hearing a petition related to alleged irregularities in recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools.
     The high court had said that Ghosh could also be questioned soon by the central agencies along with Banerjee, the TMC national general secretary.
     Abhishek Banerjee had addressed a public meeting in Kolkata on March 29 where he reportedly made the claim about Ghosh being under pressure to name him.
     Kuntal Ghosh, an accused in the school jobs scam case and in custody currently, had also soon after alleged that he was being pressured by investigators to allege the complicity of Banerjee, TMC’s unofficial number two.
    Holding that the complaint by Ghosh was made on March 31 before the special CBI court and on April 1 to Hastings police station in Kolkata, the high court had said the matter requires investigation.
     "It is a matter to be enquired and investigated whether Kuntal Ghosh took the cue from the public speech of said Abhishek Banerjee for which both of them can be interrogated both by ED and by CBI and such interrogation should be made soon," the HC judge had said.
     Maintaining that "terrorising" investigating officers of a probe agency by filing complaint before the police is wholly unwarranted, the high court had said such endeavours are to be stopped forthwith as otherwise officers will not be able to act in a fearless manner.
     The HC had said Ghosh had not complained of any torture by CBI or ED officers immediately after his custody with the two agencies ended, and when he was sent to judicial remand, but did so in the complaints of March 31 and April 1.
     Ghosh was in ED custody after his arrest by the agency till February 2, and was in CBI custody from February 20 to 23.
     The high court had said if the money trail from the teaching jobs scam is considered a human body, the CBI and ED have reached maximum up to the waist of the body in this investigation and the heart and the head are yet to be touched.
     The single judge had expressed hope that the agencies will be able to do so.
     "From today no police station will lodge any FIR against any complaint made to it in respect of any officer of CBI and ED who are investigating the educational recruitment scam both of West Bengal Central School Service Commission and the West Bengal Board of Primary Education, without the leave of this court," the court directed.
     It had directed that Ghosh's letters filed before the CBI court and sent to the Hastings police station will not be given effect to in any manner whatsoever until further order of this court.
    The HC had directed the ED and CBI to file a report on their investigation into the matter, if necessary, with the video recordings, before this court on April 20, when this matter will be taken up again for hearing.
     "All the aspects which have been indicated above including the public speech of one Abhishek Banerjee, should also not be outside the investigation of CBI and if necessary, by ED," the high court had directed.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)