The Bengal Government on Friday received a double setback in Calcutta High Court which acting on a CBI petition directed the transfer of jailed Minister Madan Mitra’s hearing to City Sessions Court besides turning down its plea to postpone polls to seven civic bodies.
In the first case the Bench of Justice RK Bag granted the Central investigating agency’s prayer to transfer the hearing of Mitra’s bail application upon apprehensions that the hearing might not be fair at the Alipore district court where the trial was currently going on.
Citing a few previous hearings in the same case where orders had allegedly been passed too leniently and without considering certain graver aspects of the case — leading some of the accused to get bail — the CBI pleaded with the High Court to transfer the case to a different court.
Admitting the CBI plea and granting its prayer the case was transferred to the City Sessions Court. The Judge also directed the authorities concerned to transfer the related papers to the new court within 72 hours of the order being passed.
In the second case a Division Bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice Joymalya Bagchi on Friday threw out the State Government’s plea to delay the holding of the civic polls in seven municipalities in the State where the elections had long been overdue.
The Court ordered the Government to hold elections to these civic boards by June 16.