Petitioned by Bengal, SC asks HC to defer Narada case hearing

NEW DELHI: Agreeing to hear the West Bengal government and its law minister Moloy Ghatak’s plea against the Calcutta HC order refusing to take their affidavits on record in CBI’s transfer petition in the Narada case, the Supreme Court on Friday requested the HC to adjourn the hearing scheduled for June 21.
Indicating that the HC could resume day-to-day hearing only after the controversy on the affidavits is settled, a bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and V Ramasubramanian posted the hearing of the plea against HC order on June 22 and hoped that HC would not take up the case till then.
The HC on June 9 did not accept affidavits by the CM and law minister related to their role on May 17, the day of the arrest of four TMC functionaries, that became a ground for CBI moving a petition to transfer the case from the special court in Kolkata.
Hitting out at the HC for allegedly applying different standards for parties, the law minister in his appeal said while CBI was allowed to file affidavits without leave of the court to remove lacuna in its pleading, the affidavits from him and the CM were not allowed on the ground of delay.
“The HC has lost sight of the fact that what is good for the goose is good for the gander, and if CBI was permitted to fill lacunae in its pleadings and improve its case by filing two additional affidavits without the leave of the HC, it is surprising that CBI is today opposing the affidavit by the petitioner, and HC is perpetuating the illegality by imposing different standards for parties …in an arbitrary manner, and in utter disregard to the principles of equity and natural justice,” Ghatak said.
He said notice was issued to him on May 27 and the affidavit was filed on June 9. He said the 12 days included two weekends and two court holidays and there was a mere delay of 7 days which “is neither excessive nor perverse so as to render it non-condonable”.