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Bengal

City HC cancels Madan Mitra’s bail, asks him to surrender

Calcutta High Court on Thursday cancelled the bail of Trinamool Congress leader and former minister Madan Mitra, accused in the multi-crore rupees Saradha chit fund scam, and asked him to surrender.
Allowing a petition by CBI pleading to cancel the bail granted by a lower court on October 31, a division bench of Justice Nishita Mhatre and Justice Tapas Mukherjee asked Mitra, to surrender immediately after receiving a copy of the court's order.

Mitra's counsel S K Kapur sought seven days time to surrender, but the court rejected it. During the hearing Mitra's lawyer argued that there is no evidence of tampering by his client who is "not a history-sheeter".

Mitra, who was arrested by CBI on December 12, 2014, for alleged complicity in the Saradha scam, was granted bail by Alipore court on October 31.

Later on Calcutta High Court directed that Mitra would remain in house confinement under police surveillance till the disposal of CBI's plea for cancellation of his bail.

Madan, who was the state's Transport Minister, submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday hours after CBI argued before the Calcutta High Court that his bail be cancelled. It was then forwarded to Governor K N Tripathi.

Citing his capacity to influence as a cabinet minister, the CBI had yesterday argued before the court that he could tamper with evidence as investigators are trying to find out the money trail.

The minister's bail prayers had been rejected by trial courts on a few occasions earlier and once by the High Court. When the Calcutta High Court cancelled his bail and ordered him to surrender, Mitra on Thursday said that a court always metes out justice.

“Can court do injustice? Court always metes out justice,” Mitra said while on his way to surrender before the Alipore court in compliance with the order by the Calcutta High Court division bench of Justices Nishita Mhatre and Tapas Mukherjee.

“I am going to surrender; I am yet to receive the court's order. But since I have seen it on TV, and the court has directed to surrender, I am going to surrender to abide by the court order,” said Mitra.

The CBI had moved an appeal before the high court, after Mitra was granted bail by a lower court on October 31, nearly 11 months after he was arrested by the CBI on December 12 on charges of cheating, conspiracy and criminal breach of trust in connection with the state's biggest financial scandal that came to light in April 2013.
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