The CBI investigation order in the Sandeshkhali assault case against ED personnel was upheld by the Supreme Court of Calcutta

On Monday, the Supreme Court declined to intervene in the Calcutta High Court’s directive to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to initiate an investigation into the Sandeshkhali case concerning the assault on Enforcement Directorate (ED) agents.

Live Law noted that the Supreme Court removed the High Court’s criticism of the state police and administration.

The West Bengal Police were instructed to turn over Shahjahan Sheikh, the accused who carried out the assault, from the West Bengal CID to the CBI on the same day by the Calcutta High Court, which issued an order on March 5 directing an impartial CBI investigation into the attack case including ED officers.

In response, the state government filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) with the highest court, claiming that the decision to hand over the investigation to the CBI was made in a hasty way and that it violates the state government’s right to seek legal recourse.

In Bengal’s Sandeshkhali, Shahjahan Sheikh has been charged with sexual assault, land grabbing, and extortion.

On January 5, while conducting searches at the home of Sheikh, who is suspected of having strong ties to the detained former state food minister Jyoti Priya Mallick in relation to the multi-crore ration distribution scam in West Bengal, an ED team was ambushed by a crowd. Shahjahan is charged with encouraging the crowd to assault the ED personnel.

He fled the scene on the day of the incident. Sheikh was apprehended by state police on February 29 in connection with the assault on ED personnel, after a 55-day manhunt. Shahjahan Sheikh has 40 other charges against him, but the ED claims that the Bengal police arrested him in the ED case so that the custody would not transfer to the CBI.

On March 6, however, he was turned over to the investigation team.