The Supreme Court Tuesday asked the Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar to appear before the CBI and faithfully cooperate in the probe into the Saradha chit fund scam, but said he must not be arrested.
A bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, Justice L Nageswara Rao and Justice Sanjiv Khanna said the CBI must not resort to any coercive action, including arresting the officer.
Directing the Kumar to “appear and make himself available before the investigating agency … the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)”, the court order said that he would “faithfully cooperate with the investigating agency at all times”.
In a rider, the court said, “however, we make it clear that no coercive steps including arrest shall be taken against the commissioner of police”.
Attempting to avoid all “unnecessary controversy”, the court ordered: “We direct the commissioner of police to appear before the investigating agency in Shillong, Meghalaya on such date(s) as may be fixed”.
The court opted for a neutral place Shillong on a request from attorney general KK Venugopal.
The court also sought responses from the West Bengal chief secretary, the director general of police (DGP) and Rajeev Kumar on a contempt petition moved on Monday by the CBI along with the one asking for direction to Kumar to surrender for investigation.
Directing the chief secretary, DGP and the Kolkata police commissioner to file their responses to the “statements made in the contempt petition on or before 18.2.2019”, the order said that on consideration of their replies, if court requires their personal presence on February 20—the next date of hearing—the same would be communicated to their respective offices on February 19.
During the hearing, Venugopal described the situation as “a total breakdown of constitutional machinery” and solicitor general Tushar Mehta highlighted that the CBI personnel were detained at a police station.
Appearing for the Kolkata police commissioner, senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi told the court: “They have asked for surrender when no offence is made out”.
“Rajeev Kumar is vilified. He has written to the CBI to meet at a neutral place where the entire SIT will be there to be questioned,” Singhvi told the court.
Justice Gogoi said: “The problem with you is you assume too many things. What is your problem? You can cooperate.”
The next hearing will held be on February 20.
MORAL VICTORY: BANERJEE
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee Tuesday welcomed the Supreme Court verdict in a CBI plea against Kolkata police chief Rajeev Kumar and described the order to the CBI not to arrest him a “moral victory.”
“It is our moral victory. We said we have full respect for the judiciary and institutions,” Banerjee told the media from the dais of her sit-in protest here.
“This order was passed earlier also that they can talk mutually in a mutual place. We are grateful for the verdict. Rajeev Kumar never said he would not cooperate. He gave five letters to the CBI asking the officials to meet him at a mutual place but they went to his house to arrest him in a secret operation”.
“Today the court said no arrest… We welcome the verdict. It will strengthen the morale of the officials,” Banerjee said.
Asked if her sit-in protest will continue after the court verdict, Banerjee said she would take a decision after talking to other opposition leaders.
“I don’t go alone. We are not alone. I will consult the main opposition leaders of all the parties who extended their support to us,” the Trinamool Congress supremo said.
“I am grateful to the people of the country. I am grateful to all my forces including the state and central forces. We respect each other. We have no quarrel but this Modi government is creating divisions between the state and central forces. This is not fair”.
“Our case is very strong. We never said we will not co-operate. The even questioned my office staff by going to his residence as he is a 72-year-old person”, she said.
Noting that the central and the state governments have their own jurisdiction, the chief minister claimed that the CBI action without informing the state government was a violation of the Constitution and the federal structure.
“Both the state and central governments are elected governments and both have their own jurisdiction. If you see that the central agencies are coming to arrest the state officials vindictively without any prior notice to the state government, don’t you think it will violate the constitutional obligation as law and order is a state subject?” she questioned.
Banerjee said the CBI cannot enter any house and arrest whoever they want to.
“In India no one is the ‘Bigg Boss’ of the country except the people and the Constitution,” she declared to cheers from her supporters.
“Why is the CBI calling people and arresting them? You cannot fight them after the arrest for four months as you are not allowed to go to any other court except the CBI court. So where will people get justice?”
She later ended her protest sit-in, according to reports.
‘MHA SEEKS ACTION AGAINST KOLKATA POLICE CHIEF’
The union home ministry, which is the cadre controlling authority of the Indian Police Service officers in the country, has asked the West Bengal chief secretary to initiate disciplinary proceedings against Kolkata police chief Rajeev Kumar “for indiscipline and violation of service rules”.
In a communication Tuesday, the MHA said that as per information received by it, Kumar sat in a dharna along with some police officers with chief minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee which “is prima-facie in contravention of the extant provisions of the All India Services (Conduct) rules, 1968 and All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969.”