New Delhi, Oct 17: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the CBI challenging the Calcutta High Court’s order that had granted anticipatory bail to West Bengal DGP and former Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar in connection with the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam.

A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran directed that the contempt of court case—regarding allegations that the state police were interfering with the CBI’s investigation in the Saradha scam—be listed after eight weeks.

In November 2019, the Supreme Court had directed the senior IPS official to respond to the CBI’s appeal challenging the anticipatory bail granted to him. Since then, the petition has remained pending before the apex court. Before this, the Calcutta High Court had granted anticipatory bail to Kumar in connection with the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam, observing that custodial interrogation was “not justified” in the given circumstances.

A Bench of Justices Sahidullah Munshi and Subhasis Dasgupta noted that Kumar, who as Commissioner of Bidhannagar Police headed the SIT before the investigation was handed over to the CBI, had already appeared before the Central agency for questioning on multiple occasions.

Rejecting the CBI’s plea for custodial interrogation on the ground of alleged discrepancies in seizure timings and tampering of CDRs, the Calcutta HC held: “We, however, do not justify custodial interrogation merely on this score… in the absence of some other convincing materials. According to our considered view, such discrepancy could be appropriately decided at the time of trial.”

It observed that despite allegations of non-cooperation, Kumar had “consciously offered himself to be interrogated in the interest of ongoing investigation” and there was no “clinching material” necessitating custody. “This is not an appropriate case, when custodial interrogation would be justified,” the Calcutta HC concluded, while granting him anticipatory bail.

The case is linked to an unprecedented confrontation between the Central and West Bengal governments in January 2019, when a CBI team reached Rajeev Kumar’s official residence to question him. However, when local police detained the CBI officers, the team was forced to retreat, prompting Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to launch a sit-in protest in defence of Kumar.

Senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Biswajit Deb, assisted by advocates Anando Mukherjee and Shwetank Singh, represented Rajeev Kumar before the apex court.

Mumbai: Workers of Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) allegedly thrashed a salon owner in Navi Mumbai after he was accused of abusing a woman employee and withholding her salary. A video of the assault, recorded by one of the attackers, has gone viral on social media.

According to reports, the incident took place at a salon in Kamothe, where the woman had been working for several months without receiving her wages. After repeated requests for payment went unanswered, she approached local MNS members for help.

Acting on her complaint, a group of MNS workers arrived at the salon and confronted the owner. The video footage shows several men slapping and punching the man as he begs them to stop. Onlookers can be heard shouting, while the woman who raised the complaint was reportedly present at the scene.

Police officials said that no formal complaint has been filed by either party so far, but they have taken cognizance of the video and are verifying its authenticity. The authorities are also investigating the circumstances that led to the confrontation.

The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has often found itself in the spotlight for similar incidents. In recent months, MNS workers have been involved in multiple cases of physical assault, particularly those linked to alleged insults against Marathi culture and language.

Earlier this week, another video surfaced showing an MNS worker slapping a woman at a Thane railway station following a heated exchange. The woman had allegedly abused the worker’s husband and made derogatory remarks about Marathi people.

Palghar: A 13-year-old tribal girl from Maharashtra’s Palghar district was allegedly forcibly married off and raped, police said on Friday.

Based on a complaint lodged by the minor, the police have registered a case against five persons, including the groom and his family from Ahilyanagar, an official said.

According to the police, the girl’s grandfather allegedly got her married to a man from Ahilyanagar in September, and she was repeatedly sexually assaulted. The groom’s parents also mentally harassed her.

“We have registered a case against five individuals, including a family member, for the forced marriage, trafficking, and repeated sexual assault of a minor girl. The case involves multiple jurisdictions, and we are coordinating the investigation to ensure immediate action is taken against all the accused involved in this serious crime,” the official said.

The offence has been registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, he said.