CBI vs Bengal: Did Rajeev Kumar, withhold or destroy evidence?

Kolkata, Feb 04: The Kolkata Police Commissioner, Rajeev Kumar finds himself at the centre of a controversy after the Central Bureau of Investigation tried to question him in connection with the chit fund scams in West Bengal.

Kumar had led a Special Investigation Team to probe the scams and the CBI says that he has withheld the evidence. The CBI also alleges that Kumar had not handed over the evidence or had destroyed them. We suspect a larger conspiracy into this and hence want to question him.

A source in the CBI tells OneIndia that the attempts to question Kumar have been on for few years now. The CBI has even called and written to him, but there has been no response from his side, the officer informed.

Appearing for the West Bengal government in the Supreme Court, senior advocate, Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that the CBI is treating Kumar as an accused, when he is a witness. The CBI contended that Kumar was not joining the probe and there was a need to question him. The matter will be taken up for hearing tomorrow.

Following a Supreme Court ruling in 2014, the case was handed over to the CBI. Once the probe by the CBI commenced, the evidence collected by the SIT was not handed over to the agency. We fear this evidence may have been destroyed, the CBI officer also said.

In an unprecedented development, a number of CBI officers, who had gone to question Kolkata Police chief Rajeev Kumar in connection with chit fund scam cases, were bundled into police jeeps, whisked to a police station and detained, officials said.

While the agency sources claimed that some of its men were forcibly taken away from Kumar's Loudon Street residence and arrested, a senior police officer denied the claim and said they have been taken to the police station to check if they had done required documents to question Kumar.