Narada case: Calcutta High Court defers hearing, TMC ministers to remain in jail

The Calcutta High Court issued a notice, on Thursday (May 20, 2021), hours before the hearing stating that “due to unavoidable circumstances, the First Division Bench will not assemble today.”

Representational Image

New Delhi: The Calcutta High Court will not conduct hearing in the Narada sting tape case, which involves two cabinet ministers of the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal and two senior leaders of Trinamool Congress, on Thursday (May 20, 2021). 

The Calcutta High Court issued a notice hours before the hearing stating that “due to unavoidable circumstances, the First Division Bench will not assemble today.”

The leaders of the Trinamool Congress- Subrata Mukherjee and Firhad Hakim, MLA Madan Mitra and former city mayor Sovan Chatterjee will continue to remain in judicial custody.

The four TMC leaders were arrested on Monday morning from their residences in the city in connection with the Narada sting case that is being investigated by the CBI on an order by the high court.

The a lower court granted interim bail to all the four Trinamool leaders on Monday evening, the Calcutta High Court put a stay on the order late on the same night.

In his virtual submission before the court on Wednesday, CBI counsel and Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta, said, "The facts are perhaps unprecedented in the history of the country. It is a question of wider import. Cause of justice was frustrated in unprecedented circumstances. There was an orchestrated effort to see that justice was not done. It was well-planned and well thought out to not allow the judge to decide the bail."

The TMC has accused the BJP of a 'witch-hunt'. The Mamata Banerjee-led party targetted BJP by saying that it is protecting their own party leaders, who are allegedly involved in the case, such as Suvendu Adhikari and Mukul Roy.