Kolkata Police-CBI face-off: CBI to move SC on Monday, say sources

New Delhi: After an all-out war broke out between Centre and the Mamata Banerjee government, CBI sources said the agency will move the Supreme Court on Monday, claiming its probe in ponzi scams was being obstructed by the West Bengal government and the state police.

While calls and messages to interim CBI chief M Nageswar Rao, whose appointment is under challenge in the Supreme Court, remained unanswered, sources confirmed that the agency will move the Supreme Court on Monday to present their case. The fast-paced development started unfolding as soon as a team of 40-odd agency officers arrived at Kumar's residence at Loudon Street in central Kolkata this afternoon, but they were stopped by sentries and officials. The team had gone to question Kumar in connection with chit fund scam cases. As the CBI team landed at his residence, a team of Kolkata Police officers rushed to the spot to speak to the CBI officials and tried to enquire if they had the documents required for questioning Kumar. Later on, a small team of CBI officials was taken to Shakespeare Sarani police station for further discussions. Thereafter, more men arrived at the spot and a commotion ensued. Some CBI officers were then forcibly bundled into police jeeps and taken to the police station.

The detention of the team by the local police perplexed the agency top brass here as the CBI does not have any full time chief to take call in such politically sensitive matters. Recently appointed Director R K Shukla is yet to take reins of the agency. The CBI has been probing cases allegedly involving opposition leaders like illegal mining case and the Saradha scam in which it was seeking to question the Kolkata police chief. The probe was handed over to the CBI by the Supreme Court. In a dramatic showdown with the Modi government, a furious Banerjee, wrapped in a brown woollen shawl, began a sit-in right in front of the Metro Cinema to protest "insults" she faced at the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah. Banerjee, one of the prime movers behind the effort to cobble together an anti-BJP alliance ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, claimed the CBI knocked on the doors of Kumar without a search warrant. She alleged they want to impose President's rule in whatever states the opposition is in power. "I can assure....I am ready to die but I am not ready to bow down before the Modi government and we won't allow imposition of Emergency...please save India, save democracy, save the Constitution," she said. Banerjee asked all opposition parties to unite to bring down the Modi government and, in a rare exhortation by a political leader, called upon personnel of security forces of the Centre and states, besides the Army, to "condemn" the attitude of the Modi government. In a tit-for-tat move, a team of Kolkata Police officials also cordoned off the CGO Complex- the state headquarters of CBI. CBI officer Srivastava said, "I have also been detained and there are police officers standing outside my house." Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Pravin Tripathi said the CBI officers have been let go from the police station after questioning.