Manik's plea against arrest junked by Supreme Court

KOLKATA: The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a plea by former chairman of West Bengal Board of Primary Education, Manik Bhattacharya, challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on money laundering charges in connection with alleged irregularities in recruitment of primary school teachers.

A bench of justices Aniruddha Bose and Vikram Nath refused to interfere with the ED arrest and junked the plea filed by Bhattacharya. "The application is dismissed," the bench said.

A single judge of Calcutta High Court had allowed CBI to interrogate Bhattacharya in connection with the scam, and if necessary interrogate him in custody if he did not cooperate. Contrary to the High Court order, the SC, on appeal, directed that no coercive action should be taken against the accused.

After Bhattacharya got protection from CBI arrest, the ED subsequently arrested Bhattacharya on October 10 for his alleged involvement in irregularities in recruitment of primary school teachers through the Teachers Eligibility Test, 2014.

Bhattacharya, in his plea, submitted that the investigating officer of the ED has filed a remand application before the special judge (CBI-I) court, city sessions court, Kolkata on October 11 and that the arrest is affected during the currency of the protection orders passed by the Apex court. Bhattacharya had therefore urged the apex court to declare the arrest as illegal and to release him.