SC defers hearing on WB, TMC plea on chitfund scam probe

Supreme Court today deferred hearing on the petitions filed by West Bengal and ruling Trinamool Congress seeking a court-monitored CBI probe into the multi-crore rupee Saradha scam, alleging that the agency was acting as an "instrument" of the Centre and targetting TMC leaders.
The matter was listed before a bench, headed by Justice T S Thakur, but could not be taken up for hearing as the judges were involved in a meeting.
The court master simply told the advocates appearing in the matter that it has been decided that the matter will not be taken up today and some other date will be fixed.

In its plea, senior advocate Kapil Sibal had alleged that the CBI was leaking crucial information to others even before they reached the state government.
"Information is reaching other parties much earlier than the West Bengal government as there is a leakage," Sibal had said.
The apex court, on May 9 last year, had ordered CBI probe into the chit-fund scams in West Bengal, Odisha and Assam where various companies, including Saradha, were operating, while taking note of allegations of scamsters getting "patronage" of people in "high positions".
All India Trinamool Congress, through its state general secretary Mahua Moitra, had moved the court for being made one of the parties to the petition and sought a court-monitored CBI investigation in the scam.

"Direct and restrain the CBI to desist from leaking the details of investigation in the cases being investigated by the CBI in terms of judgment dated May 9, 2014 to the media/press," one of the pleas had said.