Narada sting case: Two Bengal ministers, TMC MLA taken to CBI office in Kolkata

By Express News Service

KOLKATA: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested three newly elected Trinamool Congress MLAs, including two ministers, and former TMC minister and mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) in connection with the Narada sting operation case which was performed in 2014 and released a month before the 2016 Assembly elections in West Bengal. The central agency will submit the chargesheet in Narada sting operation case on Monday.

Panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee, a veteran in Bengal’s politics, urban development and transport minister Firhad Hakim, who is also an administrator of the KMC, TMC MLA from Kamarhati, North 24 Parganas, Madan Mitra and Sovan Chatterjee, former TMC minister who joined the BJP and later resigned, have been arrested on non-bailable charges.

WB CM Mamata Banerjee arrived CBI’s Nizam Palace where two TMC ministers and one MLA arrested in Narada sting operation case. @NewIndianXpress @gsvasu_TNIE @khogensingh1

— Pranab Mondal (@PranabM29940593) May 17, 2021

While being taken away from his residence, Hakim said he was being arrested in connection with the Narada case and he would fight against the CBI in the court of law.

The TMC alleged the arrests is a fallout of BJP’s debacle in the recently concluded Assembly elections. ‘’The central agency’s act clearly reflects BJP’s politics of revenge. They failed to combat politically with the TMC in the elections and are now using the central agency,’’ said TMC MP and spokesperson Saugata Roy.

The ruling party alleged the CBI did not take the permission of the Speaker of the Assembly before arresting the three MLAs. ‘’The CBI did not communicate with me and seek my permission to arrest the MLAs. I received no letter from the central agency,’’ said Speaker Biman Banerjee.

Sources in the CBI said there was a provision in the law that an MLA can be arrested after getting an approval from the governor.

The CBI, however, is yet to take step against Suvendu Adhikari, BJP’s Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, and the saffron camp’s national vice president Mukul Roy. Both the defectors have been named in the FIR.