BREAKING | Supreme Court To Hear TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee's Appeal Against CBI Notice In School Jobs Scam Case On May 26

The Supreme Court has agreed to list on May 26 an appeal filed by TMC leader and MP Abhishek Banerjee against Calcutta High Court's order dismissing his plea to recall the order passed by Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay on April 13 giving liberty to the CBI and ED to interrogate him in the West Bengal School Job Scam case.

A vacation bench comprising Justice Aniruddha Bose and Justice Sanjay Karol listed the appeal after a mentioning was made by Senior Advocate AM Singhvi. 

Singhvi argued that the central investigating agency had called Banerjee while he is campaigning outside the state.

"My lords he's in Darjeeling and they're asking him to be questioned. He's campaigning outside the state. Any date this week may be granted. Also concerning the costs imposed against him, we're appealing that too," Singhvi submitted.

The Supreme Court then listed the matter on coming Friday, that is, May 26. 

Last week, the Calcutta High Court in a strongly worded order had dismissed Banerjee's plea. It said Banerjee being in the top rung of the ruling political party ought not to shy away from the investigation process. However, he was trying tooth and nail to oppose an investigation in the West Bengal School Job Scam case. The bench of Justice Amrita Sinha observed that the proper approach for him should be to put himself to the test and come out clean instead of avoiding or running away from the entire process. The State machinery, especially the police, also appears to back the accused, the Court had osberved.

Justice Gangopadhyay had asked the ED and CBI to question Banerjee and Kuntal Ghosh while hearing a petition relating to alleged irregularities in the recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools. The judge had taken into account a letter written by expelled Trinamool leader Kuntal Ghosh, wherein he had alleged that he was being pressurised to implicate Banerjee in the recruitment Scam. Banerjee also, in one of his public speeches, claimed that several incarcerated individuals were being forced to implicate him in the case. The April 13 order was stayed briefly by the Supreme Court on April 17, the Top Court, on April 28, directed the Acting Chief Justice of the Calcutta HC to reassign the matter concerning the Primary Teachers' Recruitment Scam in West Bengal to another judge.