Time to pay for your misdeeds; Calcutta HC allows CBI to interrogate Mamta's aide Rajeev Kumar

Kolkata, September 13: While he thought he could escape, destiny had something else in store for him. In a setback to former Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar and majorly to Mamata Banerjee, the Calcutta High Court has withdrawn protection from the custodial interrogations and arrest made by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The CBI has now reached Rajeev Kumar’s doorstep to serve him a notice to appear on Saturday.

 

Trying to escape from his misdeeds, even Mamata Banerjee couldn’t save him. The Central Bureau of Investigation knocking at his doorsteps have issued Rajeev Kumar a notice to appear before them for interrogation on Saturday. The Officer-in-Charge (OC) of the Shakespeare Sarani Police Station and the Additional OC from the Park Street station arrived at Kumar's residence in 34, Park Street.

While reading the judgement addressed by the High Court Bench, head Justice Madhumita Mitra said that providing interim protection against CBI's arrests is equivalent to obstruction of justice by interrupting due procedure. Rajeev Kumar, who recently moved the Calcutta High Court seeking quashing of the CBI notice against him, was granted protection from coercive action but was asked to cooperate with the agency in the investigation into the case.

It was in April, the CBI had told the Supreme Court that Kumar's custodial interrogation was necessary as he was not cooperating in the probe and was "evasive" and "arrogant" in answering the queries put to him during questioning.

Kumar’s lawyer defended his client by saying that the repeated CBI summons are defaming his client in his social circle. The CBI's prosecutor responded to this and claimed that the intelligence agency has appealed to the Supreme Court for ensuring Kumar's presence in interrogations, to ensure smooth proceedings of the case. According to the CBI, the former police commissioner has been complicit in destroying evidence related to the Saradha case when he was the head of the inquiry committee formed by Bengal Chief Minister to look into the case.

Kumar is being investigated in relation to the Saradha scandal, a multi-crore Ponzi scheme financial scam that had left thousands of small investors in West Bengal in the lurch. He has been under directions of the Supreme Court which had asked him to cooperate with the probing agency.