The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with the Calcutta high court order transferring the investigation into the attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in Sandeshkhali on January 5 from the West Bengal Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) even as it expunged disparaging remarks made against the state government and local police in the impugned order.
The high court, in its March 5 order, held that the state police are “totally biased” and that every attempt was being made to delay the investigation to protect Trinamool Congress (TMC) strongman Sheikh Shahjahan, a prime accused in the case related to attack on ED officials.
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“We are not inclined to interfere with impugned order in so far as the directions of the high court are concerned. However, observations made with respect to the conduct of police and the state government shall stand expunged,” stated the bench of justices BR Gavai and Sandeep Mehta in its order.
At one point during the brief hearing, the top court also questioned the West Bengal government over the delay in arresting Shahjahan, who was recently suspended from the TMC.
“Why was he not arrested for so long? The high court order records there are 42 FIRs against him. What is the duration of these FIRs? When were they registered? How long does it take to file charge sheets?” the bench asked senior counsel Jaideep Gupta, who appeared in the case along with state’s standing counsel Astha Sharma.
Gupta replied that in the case concerned, seven persons were arrested immediately, and that Shahjahan was also arrested on February 29, soon after the high court clarified that a stay on the investigation in the case did not mean a restraint on arresting the accused. “It is very damaging to say that the state police are delaying the investigation. It is not borne out of records of the case at all,” Gupta added.
Rebutting his submissions, additional solicitor general SV Raju, on behalf of ED, said that agency officials were beaten up when they went to the house of Shahjahan in connection with a probe into an alleged ration racket. Contending that Shahjahan was being protected by the local police and state administration, Raju said that a sham FIR was also lodged against ED officials accusing them of molestation and trespassing to weaken the charges against the accused.
The ASG further pointed out that the state police at first defied the high court judgment on March 5 when they were supposed to hand over Shahjahan’s custody to CBI, adding it was only after another order was passed on March 6 that CBI got the custody of the TMC strongman.
At this point, senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi, also representing the West Bengal government, stepped in to express the state’s concerns regarding the strictures recorded by the high court in its order.
As the court expressed its willingness to entertain the appeal on this aspect, ASG Raju made a statement that the agency had no problem if the strictures against the state administration and local police were expunged.
Accepting ED’s stance, the bench proceeded to expunge the strictures against the West Bengal government and the state police while refusing to interfere with the order of a CBI probe into the case.
Since last month, there has been unrest in Sandeshkhali, North 24 Parganas, as local women have taken to the streets to seek the arrest of Shahjahan and his associates on charges of sexual assault and land grabbing.
The high court judgment on March 5 came on two appeals filed separately by ED and the state police against a single bench order which on January 17 ordered formation of a joint special investigation team (SIT) of CBI and the state police to probe the mob attack on the ED officials. While ED wanted the probe to be transferred to CBI only, the state pressed for the retention of the probe.
The high court division bench, however, noted that Shahjahan, despite being a public representative who faced 42 criminal cases, could flee for at least 50 days before he was arrested. “He is an elected representative of the public, holding the highest office in a Zilla Parishad, he was fielded as the candidate at the elections held for the said post by the political party which is ruling dispensation. Thus, it has become imperative and absolutely necessary for doing complete justice and enforcing the fundamental rights of the public in general and the public of the locality that the cases be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation for investigation and to proceed further,” said the high court.
The division bench of chief justice TS Sivagnanam and justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya added in its order: “The state police had played a ‘hide and seek’ methodology in all probabilities to shield the accused (Shahjahan), who undoubtedly is a highly politically influential person and has demonstrably shown that he is and would be in a position to influence the investigation if allowed to rest with the state police.”
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Emphasising that “a fair, honest and complete investigation” could alone retain the public confidence in the impartial working of the state agencies, the court said: “We have no hesitation in our mind to hold that this confidence has been shaken and there can be no better case than the case on hand which requires to be transferred to be investigated by CBI.”
ED has already provisionally attached moveable and immovable assets worth ₹12.78 crore of Shahjahan. These include agricultural land, fish farms and apartments in Sandeshkhali, besides two bank accounts.