The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court against a May 21 order by the Calcutta High Court ordering that the four TMC leaders accused in the Narada case be kept under house arrest for the time being rather than being held in judicial custody.
The investigation agency also filed an adjournment letter with the Calcutta High Court, claiming that since it had filed a petition with the Supreme Court, the case that was scheduled to be heard before a 5-judge Bench of the High Court today should be postponed.
After the judges on the Division Bench, Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Arijit Banerjee, disagreed on the grant of interim bail for the four accused, the Calcutta High Court decided to refer the case to a larger Bench.
One judge thought the four accused people should be released on interim bail, while the other thought they should be held in prison.As a precaution, the Division Bench ordered that the four TMC leaders be put under house arrest, in accordance with the Supreme Court's order in the Gautam Navlakha case in the Bhima Koregaon matter.
The CBI objected to the ruling, and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta urged the Court to grant a stay so that the agency could file an appeal with the Supreme Court. The High Court, on the other hand, turned down this appeal.The CBI arrested the four leaders on May 17: Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee, Madan Mitra, and Sovan Chatterjee.
They were granted temporary bail by a special CBI court that evening, but it was stayed by the High Court the next day. The CBI also said that the State Law Minister and his supporters flocked to the special court complex where the four leaders' bail plea were heard.
The Calcutta High Court heard the case in its entirety on May 19. The trial remained unresolved and was scheduled to resume on May 21, but the case was referred to a wider Bench because the judges disagreed on the issue of interim bail.
The CBI has also filed an adjournment letter with the Calcutta High Court, claiming that since the agency has moved the Supreme Court, the case, which was scheduled to be heard on May 24, will be postponed.