Kolkata: The Bankshall Court has granted bail to West Bengal ministers Subrata Mukherjee and Firhad Hakim, TMC MLA Madan Mitra, and former Kolkata mayor Sovan Chatterjee after CBI arrested the four in connection with the 2016 Narada sting operation case.
Earlier in the day, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said that the court will decide on the matter while expressing disappointment over the arrests.
The TMC supremo made these remarks after coming out of the CBI’s office at Nizam Palace in south Kolkata after nearly six hours.
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The CBI arrested West Bengal ministers Subrata Mukherjee and Firhad Hakim, TMC MLA Madan Mitra, and former Kolkata mayor Sovan Chatterjee in connection with the 2016 Narada sting operation case.
A virtual hearing was held at Bank shall Court in Kolkata over the arrests. The accused were virtually produced from Nizam Palace, before the court.
Banerjee, who rushed to the CBI office earlier in the day following the arrests, said that she too should be arrested.
The TMC supporters later staged a protest against the arrests and pelted stones at the CBI office.
The TMC supporters, who demanded immediate release of the four arrested, also raised slogans against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre and West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar.
TMC MP and the Chief Minister’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee said that they will fight this battle legally.
“I urge everyone to abide by the law & refrain from any activity that violates lockdown norms for the sake of the larger interest of Bengal and its people. We have utmost faith in the judiciary & the battle will be fought legally,” he tweeted.
West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra also lambasted the ruling party at the Centre over the arrests and alleged it to be a “political vendetta after outright rejection” by the people in the state assembly polls.
“Utter violation of Democratic Norms & Federalist Polity by Modi-Shah controlled CBI, arresting 2 Bengal Ministers WITHOUT Assembly Speaker’s permission as per protocol. Political Vendetta after outright REJECTION by people of Bengal. Reveals Neo-Fascist mindset of BJP-Sangh Parivar,” he tweeted.