CBI summons sting operator Samuel in 'Narada tapes' case

New Delhi: The CBI has summoned sting operator Mathew Samuel, owner, and editor of Narada News in connection with its probe on the sting operation where several West Bengal politicians were allegedly seen accepting cash on camera.

The probe agency has asked Samuel, the journalist who had shot the video footage, to appear before its officials in Kolkata on June 24.

The "Narada tapes" were released in the public domain before the 2016 West Bengal assembly polls allegedly show several Trinamool Congress politicians accepting cash. The list of politicians included Mukul Roy, who jumped ship to the Bharatiya Janata Party after the tapes were made public. Based on a Calcutta High Cout order, the Central Bureau of Investigation had registered a preliminary enquiry in the case, which was then turned into an FIR in April 2017, naming 12 TMC politicians and a West Bengal cadre IPS officer SMH Meerza.

While the Saradha case probe picked up pace in the last few weeks, with the CBI grilling former Kolkata to-cop Rajeev Kumar, the probe agency had also questioned Meerza in connection with the Narada case. He was the Superintendent of Police in Burdwan district when the sting operation was conducted by Samuel in 2014.

Samuel had in 2014, set up meetings with several politicians in West Bengal including state ministers and police officials to ask favours for a made-up company of his called Impex Consultancy. He then recorded these meetings covertly on his iPhone, where some of the politicians were allegedly seen demanding and accepting cash in exchange for providing favours to Samuel's fictitious company.

Earlier this year, the probe agency had reportedly claimed that a chargeheet in the case is likely to come soon.