Saradha scam: CBI heat on Mamata Banerjee govt to find ex-top cop Rajeev Kumar's location

Kolkata: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has started mounting pressure on the Trinamool Congress government to trace senior IPS officer Rajeev Kumar to prosecute him in the Saradha chit fund scam without giving him the time of one month that he had begged for on Saturday for his appearance to face questioning.

As Mr. Kumar remained evasive, the CBI, in a tactical move, sent a team to Nabanna, the state secretariat housing chief minister Mamata Banerjee's office, on Sunday afternoon to send letters to top three bureaucrats: chief secretary Malay De, home secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay and director general of police (DGP) Virendra of her government seeking information on the former Kolkata Police Commissioner's whereabouts.

The cops of the Kolkata Police, who were posted at Nabanna's entrance were in surprise, when the three-member CBI team, armed with the letters, reached there at around 5 pm. After a wait of 15 minutes, the CBI team, escorted by a police officer was allowed to go inside.

While two letters to the DGP were delivered after examination, two more could not be delivered. The CBI team was told that the two other letters could not be accepted because the offices of the chief secretary and home secretary were closed as it was a holiday. Not losing hope, the CBI will, however, visit Nabanna again on Monday to deliver the letters for the chief secretary and home secretary.

The CBI's move came after its officers consulted its counsel Y J Dastoor during a visit to his residence on Saturday afternoon to explore steps to tighten noose around Mr. Kumar who is also the additional director general of the criminal investigation department of the West Bengal Police.

It was decided that the top three bureaucrats would be sent letters to know Mr. Kumar's present location since a section of senior state government officials, soon after the Calcutta High Court withdrew the blanket protection on his arrest on September 13 afternoon, started claiming on anonymity that the former Kolkata Police Commissioner had been on leave, according to sources.

If Mr. Kumar has been on leave, the state government, especially the home department and DGP, must have been aware of his location courtsey to the service rules binding a government servant to intimate his or her address even while on leave, sources in the CBI indicated.

Incidentally, Mr. Kumar had sent an email to the CBI praying for one month's time for the treatment of his wife who is in another state, however. But the CBI has not replied to his plea so far. Meanwhile, Mr. Dastoor has been called to CBI Headquarters in New Delhi to chalk out legal steps if Mr. Kumar moves the Supreme Court for his relief on Monday.