Calcutta HC upholds order for CBI probe in municipalities recruitment scam

Kolkata, May 12 Calcutta High Court's single-judge bench of Justice Amrita Sinha on Friday upheld the order by the bench of Justice Gangopadhyay for a CBI probe into the alleged multi-crore recruitment scam in municipalities of West Bengal.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had put an interim stay on the order by Justice Gangopadhyay for a CBI probe in the scam, which the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had unearthed while investigating the alleged recruitment scam in state-run schools.

The apex court had also referred the matter back to the Calcutta High Court.

Meanwhile, the state government made a petition at the bench of Justice Sinha for reconsideration of the order.

The matter came up for hearing at Justice Sinha's bench on Friday. Justice Sinha dismissed the plea of the state government on this count and allowed CBI to continue with the probe in the matter.

State Advocate General S.N. Mukherjee argued that the previous bench ordered the CBI probe without hearing the argument of the state government.

"Matters related to municipalities were not the subjects of that court which ordered the CBI probe. Moreover, law & order being a state subject, the state police should have the authority to probe the matter. But in this case that scope was not granted to the state police," the state advocate general argued.

However, the counter argument to this in the court was that since recruitment scams in state-run schools and municipalities in West Bengal were related, the central agency probe in the matter is required.

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