Calcutta HC stays state police probe into ration distribution cases

Kolkata, Feb 5 The Calcutta High Court on Monday stayed any kind of probe by the West Bengal Police into the ration distribution cases in West Bengal.

The single-judge bench of Justice Jay Sengupta ordered the stay while hearing a petition filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking hand over of probe in all cases relating to the alleged multi-crore ration distribution irregularities in West Bengal from the state police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Although the ED and CBI have launched a parallel probe into the matter, six cases are still under the jurisdiction of the state police.

Justice Sengupta said the state police started the investigation following an FIR lodged at the Ballygung police station in Kolkata in 2019. However, the bench ordered that in case the state police are still carrying out any investigation into any ration-distribution related case, they should stop the probe for the time being.

The stay will be in force till March 5. Justice Sengupta also ordered the state police to submit the case diaries relating to all such cases to his bench at the earliest.

On Friday, the bench had not said anything about ED’s plea to hand over the investigation in all such cases to CBI.

In its plea, that ED argued that despite the state police having filed FIRs in these six cases, there had been virtually no progress in the investigation since then, and the state police have not taken any action against a single accused in the cases.

The central agency also complained that although it has written to the state police regarding the progress of investigation in these cases, there was no reply from the latter.

The central agency has also accused the state police of deliberately going slow in the matter because of the involvement of politically-influential people, including members of the state Cabinet.

The ED has already arrested State Forest Minister and former Food & Supplies Minister Jyotipriya Mallick in connection with the ration distribution case.

The two other persons arrested in connection with the case are Kolkata businessman Bakibur Rahaman and Trinamool Congress leader Shankar Adhya, both known to be close confidants of Mallick.

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