Central agency should be allowed: Buddhadeb

Siliguri/Kolkata, Jun 30 (UNI) Even though his party was up in arms against the CBI, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today said the central agency must be allowed to probe the Tapasi Malik murder case, while Suhrid Dutta, the arrested CPI (M) leader, was flown to Delhi for polygraph test.

" Let the CBI investigate the case independently. I will see which way the things move, " he told reporters at Siliguri.

Dutta, the high profile Singur zonal committee Secretary Secretary of the CPI(M) was arrested by CBI yesterday in connection with the murder prompting the party to raise the allegation of a conspiracy.

Dutta was nabbed following the arrest of Debu Malik, who was earlier arrested as the prime suspect.

Both of them were remanded to CBI custody by a district court yesterday.

Following a court order, a team of CBI sleuths left the city today escorting Dutta to Delhi for a polygraph test to ascertain the truth about his alleged involvement in the case.

The charred body of the 18-year-old Tapasi Malik was recovered from inside the fenced project area of Tata Motors on December 18 last year during the height of Opposition-led movement against the small car project.

The incident triggering a political outcry as the Opposition alleged that the girl, an activist of anti-land acquisition movement, had been raped and murdered by CPI(M) men to settle a political vendetta.

However, following the arrest of Dutta, the CPI(M) went on an offensive alleging that the leader had been framed with an ulterior motive.

Though stating that the subject was sub-judice, veteran CPI(M) leader Jyoti Basu said yesterday that his party believed it was a conspiracy. He said the party woud defend Dutta.

Mr Basu said the fact that the body of Tapasi Malik was found inside the the Tata Motors's project areasmall car project led to the suspicion of a conspiracy against the CPI(M).

Party's Central Committee member Benoy Konar had also alleged that the CBI had acted under outside pressure though Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee said the arrest of Dutta proved the complicity of the CPI (M) in the murder.

UNI