NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear the CBI's plea alleging destruction of electronic evidence related to the Saradha chit fund scam case by the Kolkata Police commissioner Rajeev Kumar. Asking the probe agency for evidence against Kumar, the apex court said it will come down heavily on him if he "even remotely" tries to destroy the evidence. The Supreme Court said it will hear on Tuesday probe agency's applications which alleged that an extraordinary situation has arisen in which the top police officials of the West Bengal Police are sitting on a dharna along with a political party (TMC) in Kolkata.

The applications accusing Kolkata Police chief Rajeev Kumar of destroying evidence related to the case and indulging in contempt of court were mentioned by Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta before a bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjeev Khanna. The bench declined the SG's plea to hear the two applications on Monday in the post-lunch session.

It said during the interregnum it will be open for the SG or any other party to lay before the court any material or evidence to show that any West Bengal authority or police official is planning or trying to destroy evidence related to the case. Taking strong note of Mehta's submission, the bench said "if the police commissioner is even remotely trying to destroy evidence, we will come down so heavily on him that he will regret".

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The apex court gave the CBI a day's time to place on record material to show that the State or its police were "engaged in or planning to destroy evidence connected with the investigation of the scam". The top court said all material or evidence and additional documents has to be placed before it by means of affidavit.



On the other hand, the West Bengal government moved the Kolkata High Court against the CBI's attempt to question the city police chief and sought immediate hearing. The court, however, declined its prayer.

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West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee continued her sit-in protest in Kolkata on Monday over the Central Bureau of Investigation's attempt to question Kumar in connection with a ponzi scheme scam.

The Trinamool Congress supremo has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah of attempting to destabilise her government. The top court on May 9, 2014 handed over to CBI the investigation into the Rs 10,000 crore that were collected by Ponzi companies involving 25 lakh depositors. The number was based on claims filed before a Commission of inquiry in West Bengal and Odisha.