The Supreme Court will hear the CBI’s Special Leave Petition challenging anticipatory bail granted to West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar in the Saradha chit fund case. A contempt petition against him may also be addressed alongside the SLP.
The Supreme Court heard Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the anticipatory bail granted to Rajeev Kumar, the Director General of Police of West Bengal, in the Saradha chit fund case.
A bench consisting of Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice Vinod Chandran informed today by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that a contempt petition against Kumar has also been filed, which may be addressed alongside the SLP.
Kumar’s senior counsel argued that his client has faced harassment, noting that there has been no progress in the past six years since anticipatory bail was granted in 2019, and that Kumar has not been summoned even once during this period.
Importantly, a Supreme Court bench led by the then Chief Justice and including Justice Surya Kant had issued a notice regarding the CBI’s SLP back in November 2019.
In August of the previous year, while advocating for a change in the police leadership overseeing the investigation into the RG Kar Medical College rape case, Solicitor General Mehta raised concerns before the Supreme Court regarding Kumar, who is under investigation for tampering with evidence related to the Saradha chit fund scam.
He stated,
“Any officer tainted with charges before this court should be replaced. He shouldn’t be allowed to continue and should be replaced. Why is the state not doing that?”
Currently, Rajeev Kumar serves as the Director General of the West Bengal Police and is in charge of the ongoing investigation into a brutal rape and murder case. He previously held the position of Director General from December 2023 until his removal by the Election Commission of India in March 2024.
Prior to rejoining the police force, Kumar was the Additional Chief Secretary for Information Technology in the West Bengal Government from 2023.
Kumar has been a member of the Indian Police Service (IPS) since 1989 with the Uttar Pradesh cadre, and he has held several significant positions, including Commissioner of Bidhannagar Police and Director of the Special Task Force (STF) within the Kolkata Police.
The Saradha Group, a consortium of over 200 private companies launched in the early 2000s by Sudipto Sen, targeted small investors with promises of high returns, quickly gaining popularity and raising approximately Rs 2,500 crore through a vast network of agents.
This scheme is widely regarded as a classic Ponzi scheme.
In 2019, Rajeev Kumar faced serious allegations from the CBI regarding evidence tampering in the Saradha chit fund case, which affected around 1.8 million depositors across multiple states, including West Bengal, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Odisha.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has been accused of connections to the scam, resulting in the questioning of several TMC MLAs, MPs, and ministers by the CBI.
The agency claims that the recovery of documents and witness testimonies pointed to Kumar’s involvement in shielding the accused. The CBI has highlighted call detail records and statements recorded by the Enforcement Directorate, indicating Kumar’s alleged complicity.
Furthermore, Kumar is accused of suppressing FIRs related to the Rose Valley Group, another ponzi scheme that illegally collected money from citizens with false promises of high returns. He is also alleged to have deliberately concealed and failed to cooperate regarding call data records of key accused individuals.
There are claims suggesting Kumar was part of a larger conspiracy associated with the chit fund scam, actively protecting several individuals connected to political or other influential entities.
The West Bengal government formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the case, led by Kumar when he was the Kolkata Police Commissioner.
In 2014, the Supreme Court transferred the case to the CBI, which alleged that Kumar had “destroyed, destructed and tampered with evidence” while leading the SIT, including the erasure of call records to protect certain individuals.
The agency also asserted that Kumar had withheld critical documents and attempted to assist the prime accused and other suspects. After Kumar ignored multiple summons, 40 CBI officers attempted to enter his official residence in Kolkata on February 3, 2019, to question him.
Case Title: CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION vs. RAJEEV KUMAR
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