NCP says CBI has been reduced to a pet dog of Modi and Amit Shah

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) workers on Thursday organised a protest with their pets, alleging that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had become a pet dog of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah. They also carried placards which read -‘We don’t want the government which makes false promises’ and ‘Modi-Amit Shah Ki CBI.’ (CBI belongs to Modi and Amit Shah). Talking to ANI, NCP leader Raju Bhatnagar said: “We came to the streets to protest against the ways the Centre is behaving. The CBI is also acting like a pet dog of the Modi government.”

Referring to the CBI’s role in barging into the residence of Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar in connection with the investigation into Saradha chit fund scam, he said: “The CBI should have provided prior notice to Kumar.” “The Central government is misusing its power. Today, the CBI was supposed to investigate former MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh and his wife, but why they were not investigated,” he asked.

A full-blown face-off between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led TMC government and the Centre erupted after a CBI team moved to arrest Kolkata Police Commissioner Kumar on Sunday night. The central investigative agency officials were denied entry to the top cop’s residence and were detained briefly too.

Escalating her confrontation with the Centre, Banerjee started her 'Save the Constitution' dharna on Sunday night to protest against what the TMC called a ‘coup’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre. On Tuesday, Chief Minister Banerjee ended her sit-in protest, saying that she would take her fight against the central government to Delhi next week.

The Supreme Court has directed Kumar to appear before the CBI in connection with Saradha chit fund scam probe. The bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said that no coercive step should be taken against Kumar, who will appear before the CBI in Shillong, Meghalaya. The top court, which posted further hearing in the case to February 20, also issued a contempt notice to West Bengal Chief Secretary, the DGP and the Kolkata Police Commissioner on a plea which said that the CBI team was detained when it went to question Kumar on Sunday. 

(With inputs from agencies.)