New Delhi: The Supreme Court has granted interim relief to Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Abhishek Banerjee, staying the Calcutta High Court's order which directed central probe agencies to question him in a bribe-for-school jobs case. The apex court bench, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, also granted relief to the TMC general secretary, agreeing to list his plea next Monday.
The Calcutta High Court had directed that Banerjee, nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, be questioned by the ED and the CBI and that such "interrogation should be made soon." The High court issued the order in a case related to the alleged irregularities in the recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools.
The high court's observation came while hearing a petition relating to the case. Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay had taken note of a public meeting held by Banerjee on March 29, 2023, where he allegedly urged that some persons who were in police custody confided that they were being forced to mention the name of ‘Abhishek Banerjee’.
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Justice Gangopadhyay also took note of the account that Kuntal Ghosh – one TMC leader arrested in connection with the recruitment scam alleged that he was being pressured by investigators to take the name of Banerjee. "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 judge had said.
However, the Supreme Court has now put a stay on the Calcutta High Court's order and has also stayed the high court's April 13 order directing the West Bengal Police not to lodge any FIR against CBI and Enforcement Directorate officers probing the school jobs-for-bribes scam.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for April 24, 2023. Until then, there shall be a stay on all action against Banerjee in relation to the directions passed in the impugned order, the apex court has said.
This decision by the Supreme Court is seen as a relief for Banerjee and the TMC, which is currently in power in West Bengal. The opposition parties have accused the TMC of corruption and irregularities in the recruitment of staff in government-sponsored and aided schools in the state. The case has been closely watched by political analysts, who see it as a litmus test for the TMC and its leader.
