Top Court's Conviction Question To Probe Agency In Ex Minister's Bail Case
NDTV
Partha Chatterjee, once a trusted lieutenant of Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee and the Education Minister in her cabinet, was arrested in July 2022
Hearing the bail petition of former West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee, the Supreme Court today questioned the Enforcement Directorate over the low conviction rate in money laundering cases and asked how long the senior politician can be kept behind bars.
Mr Chatterjee, once a trusted lieutenant of Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee and the Education Minister in her cabinet, was arrested in July 2022 in a money laundering case linked to the alleged teacher recruitment scam in the state. He has since been removed as minister and suspended from the Trinamool Congress.
Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Mr Chatterjee, pointed out that the trial is yet to begin and the veteran leader has already been in jail for 2.5 years in a case in which the punishment is 7-year imprisonment. "Trial is yet to start, there are 183 witnesses, four supplementary prosecution complaints, he is 73 years of age," he said. Mr Rohatgi said that even Mr Chatterjee's aide Arpita Mukherjee, from whose home a mountain of cash was recovered, has been granted bail.
