New Delhi, August 6: The Supreme Court provided interim relief on Thursday to Sumit Roy, the fugitive personal assistant of TMC General Secretary and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee, preventing his arrest.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Suryakant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohan issued a stay on the arrest by the West Bengal police concerning a land encroachment case. The court emphasized that Sumit Roy must fully cooperate with the investigation.
The apex court issued a notice on Sumit Roy’s special leave petition, which was filed against the Calcutta High Court’s rejection of his anticipatory bail plea.
The bench clearly stated that the stay on arrest would remain conditional. Sumit Roy is required to present himself before the investigative agency and provide complete cooperation.
The court’s order specified, “The petitioner will fully cooperate with the investigation. He will not be accompanied by any lawyer or other person. He will be available for questioning from 10 AM to 6 PM with a general break, during which time his arrest will be stayed.”
Senior advocate Gopal Shankaranarayanan assured the court that Sumit Roy would cooperate with the investigation.
Previously, the Calcutta High Court had dismissed Sumit Roy’s anticipatory bail application. The case was registered at the Salboni police station in West Midnapore.
Allegations suggest that Sumit Roy fraudulently occupied and sold government land using forged documents. Following a complaint, the police registered an FIR and initiated an investigation.
When Sumit Roy could not be located at his address, a local court issued an arrest warrant against him. The CID of West Bengal police had also issued a lookout notice in June.
In June, police conducted raids at Abhishek Banerjee’s residence in Kalighat, Kolkata, and at Sumit’s in-laws’ house in Serampore, Hooghly, but he was not found.
Now, following the Supreme Court’s order, Sumit Roy must participate in the investigation, and the police cannot arrest him until then.
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