[BREAKING] Narada case: Calcutta High Court declines to allow CBI prayer to stay order constituting larger Bench, house arrest of 4 TMC leaders

The Calcutta High Court has declined the CBI's prayer to stay its decision to refer the plea concerning the arrest of four TMC leaders in the Narada sting case to a larger Bench..Earlier today, the Court had decided to refer the matter to a larger Bench after the judges on the Division Bench hearing the case disagreed on the aspect of grant of interim bail to the four accused. While one of the Judges had opined that the four arrested persons should be released on interim bail, the other Judge disagreed. .[BREAKING] Narada case on interim bail for TMC leaders to be heard by larger Bench of Calcutta High Court after judges on Division Bench disagree."So we referred to larger Bench on that while thinking that meanwhile they can be in house arrest since pandemic is there", the Court informed. .Accordingly, the Court directed that the four TMC leaders arrested by the CBI be sent to house arrest, in the terms outlined by the Supreme Court earlier for the house arrest of Gautam Navlakha in the Bhima Koregaon case. .This decision was opposed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) through Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who urged the Court for a stay so that the agency may file an appeal before the Supreme Court. .The counsel for accused Senior Advocates, Dr. AM Singhvi, Sidharth Luthra and Kalyan Bandhopadhyay agreed with the Court's decision to constitute a larger Bench but requested that the same be done at the earliest. Bandhopadhyay even urged the Court to hold a day to day hearing even during the upcoming weekend and finish the matter at the earliest. .The Division Bench, however, responded that this is a decision to be taken on administrative side and that the Bench will not pass any order on that count. .The Bench of acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Arijit Banerjee was hearing the case concerning the arrest of Trinamool Congress (TMC) party leaders, Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee, Madan Mitra and Sovan Chatterjee in the Narada Sting case..While pronouncing its order today, the Court has also clarified that Firhad Hakim can continue discharging his official duties as Cabinet Minister via video conference and that the Court will not stop it. This was after the counsel requested that he is at the forefront of the fight against COVID-19. .The four leaders were arrested on May 17 for their alleged involvement in the Narada scam. .The interim bail granted by a lower to the four by a subordinate court on Monday was stayed by the High Court in an evening hearing, the order being pronounced after 10 pm the same day.The stay was granted after the CBI sought a transfer of the case from the Court dealing with the same, while also citing a threat to the probe agency on the ground that TMC leader and West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee and TMC ministers were sitting in dharna outside the agency's office which the CBI allegd was causing obstruction of justice and creating an atmosphere of fear. The CBI had also alleged that the State Law minister along with his supporters had thronged the special court complex which heard the bail plea of the four leaders. .[Read Orders]