Kolkata: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday initiated questioning of Sandeshkhali strongman Sheikh Shahjahan. The interrogation was conducted by the CBI’s Kolkata ACB Unit, which was led by SPs Gaurav Singh and Umesh Kumar. The latest development comes after the Calcutta High Court set a new deadline for Bengal police to hand over Shahjahan to the central agency on Wednesday, adding another twist to the ongoing custody dispute.
A bench of Justice Harish Tandon and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya ordered Bengal police to hand over Shahjahan’s custody to the CBI by 4.15 PM yesterday (March 6).
Earlier this week, the high court ordered Bengal police to hand over the expelled Trinamool Congress leader to the CBI by 4:30 p.m. The Mamata Banerjee government filed a Supreme Court challenge to the ruling. When a CBI team arrived to take Shahjahan into custody yesterday, they were informed that the case was before the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court, however, denied the Bengal government’s request for an urgent hearing.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had approached the high court against the Bengal police, claiming that the Supreme Court had not yet heard the state government’s petition and that there was no pause in the high court’s ruling yesterday. The ED has also sought action against officers from Bengal’s Criminal Investigation Department for failing to follow the high court’s orders.
