Supreme Court nixes West Bengal's plea against CBI probe into ration scam cases

NEW DELHI: Supreme Court on Monday dismissed West Bengal govt's appeal challenging a Calcutta HC order directing CBI probe into all ration scam cases, along with the incidents of sexual assault and land grabbing in Sandeshkhali.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan refused to accept senior advocate A M Singhvi's spirited assertion that the HC's order was against the autonomy of the state in matters of law and order and that the state police had been investigating the ration scam cases for nearly four years.Singhvi also said the ration scam cases are unrelated to the Sandeshkhali cases and that the state police have filed chargesheeets in 42 of the 43 FIRs it had registered over the last four years.
The HC had ordered CBI probe into all ration scam cases on allegations that the main accused Sheikh Sahajahan, who is in CBI custody since Feb 29 in the Sandeshkhali cases, was closely linked to arrested former state food minister Jyotipriya Mallick, the alleged main accused in the multi-crore ration scam.
Singhvi said there are video recordings available which showed that the Sandeshkhali incidents were deliberately blown out of proportion to bring disrepute to the state govt. The HC erred in clubbing the Sandeshkhali incidents with the ration scam, he argued. But Justices Gavai and Viswanathan said, "These are all related to Sandeshkhali. You (West Bengal govt) did not do anything for months. You do not even arrest the accused."
When Singhvi said that state's autonomy in a federal structure of governance is precious and that the CBI probe into ration scam would disturb it, the bench said the SC has already held that in appropriate cases - the HC and SC can order CBI probe even if the state has withdrawn general consent for CBI probe into cases registered within the state. WB had withdrawn general consent for CBI probe in 2018.