"Complete breakdown of law and order situation in West Bengal": Hardeep Puri
Puri said the TMC is not denying the offence but also giving Sheikh political cover. It is not the accused but the state that has gone in appeal to the Supreme Court, he said.
Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri (Photo/ANI)
NEW DELHI: Calling the West Bengal police "totally biased", Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday hit out at the state government and said that there is a total 'breakdown of law and order situation' in the state under Trinamool Congress rule.
Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, the union minister also slammed the Trinamul Congress government in West Bengal for opposing the Calcutta High Court's order to hand over custody of Sheikh to the CBI and called it a matter of "great shame".
"State Police is completely biased. They are not handing him over (to CBI). It is a matter of shame that the State Government allows such kind of an incident to take place and even after 55 days they don't allow him to be arrested. They are still not handing him over and saying that the investigation should not go to the Central agency..." Puri said.
Puri said the TMC is not denying the offence but also giving Sheikh political cover. It is not the accused but the state that has gone in appeal to the Supreme Court, he said.
"For the first time, I have seen that the State Government is appealing to the Supreme Court against the order that the investigation will be given to CBI," he added. On Wednesday, The Calcutta High Court issued a contempt notice to the West Bengal Crime Investigation Department, and asked the state CID to hand over the custody of Shahjahan Sheikh, the former Trinamool strongman accused of extortion, land grab, and sexual assault in Sandeshkhali to the CBI by today.
The custody of the accused Shahjahan Sheikh should be handed over to CBI by 4.30 pm on Wednesday, the court said. Calcutta High Court also observed that state police have played hide and seek in the matter.
"The accused is a highly political influencer. The investigation should be handed over to CBI and the custody of the accused by 4:15 pm today," the High Court said.
The high court had on Tuesday directed the investigation into a mob attack on ED officials -- when they went to search the premises of Sheikh in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district on January 5 in connection with a ration scam probe -- to be transferred to the CBI. After weeks of no action, on February 29 Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Sheikh Shahjahan was arrested by West Bengal police after which West Bengal's Basirhat Court remanded him to 10-day police custody.