New Delhi: West Bengal minister Jyoti Priya Mallick, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with an alleged ration distribution scam, was remanded to judicial custody for four days by a Kolkata court.
Mallick was arrested by the central agency in the early hours of October 27 from his residence in Salt Lake in connection with its investigation into the alleged scam, reported news agency PTI.
He was remanded to judicial custody by the court till November 16, the minister's lawyer said.
Earlier in the day, while undergoing a medical check-up at the Command Hospital of the army, Mallick told reporters that his left side had "become paralytic" and he was being shifted from the custody of ED to judicial remand in Presidency Jail.
According to PTI, the minister was on November 6 remanded to ED custody till November 12.
“I am in extreme physical distress. I cannot walk properly. If there is no proper treatment and I have to live in present situations, I may die soon,” he told reporters earlier today.
During the hearing, Mallick's lawyers expressed concern about the health of the minister and prayed to the court that his treatment be taken care of.
However, the minister's counsel did not pray for his bail.
Meanwhile, the opposition parties alleged that the minister's complaint of ill health was a "ploy to avoid staying in jail".
His party Trinamool Congress, on the other hand, claimed that ED’s prolonged questioning was the reason for the minister's deteriorating health.