CBI can call whoever it wants to: Trinamool legislator

Kolkata, Jan 24 (IANS) A Trinamool Congress legislator, going against the official party stand, Saturday said anybody can be summoned by the CBI for questioning for the sake of investigation in the Saradha scam, a day after a party MP claimed that some of those arrested in the scam were "guilty".

Rajarhat-New Town legislator Sabyasachi Dutta said he was not opposed to the central agency's probe into the multi-crore-rupee scam in which many leaders from the ruling party in West Bengal have been arrested.

The Mamata Banerjee government and the Trinamool have moved the Supreme Court alleging that the CBI was acting as an "instrument" of the BJP-led central government and was targeting Trinamool leaders.

Reacting to the CBI summoning Trinamool general secretary Mukul Roy, Dutta said: "It is not about Mukul Roy. For the sake of the probe, an agency can summon whoever it wants to. As a citizen of the country, it's everybody's duty to cooperate with the probe."

The Trinamool has been up in arms against the CBI following the arrest of state Transport Minister Madan Mitra for his alleged complicity in the scam.

After the agency summoned Roy, a former railway minister, the party as well as the state government moved the Supreme Court seeking its intervention.

Besides Mitra, Trinamool Rajya Sabha members Kunal Ghosh and Srinjoy Bose along with party leader Rajat Majumdar have been arrested in the scam.

"I am not personally against the probe. The Supreme Court is looking after the case and if any probe agency does anything wrong then the court is there," Dutta said.

His comments come a day after Trinamool Rajya Sabha member Debabrata Bandyopadhyay Friday claimed that those arrested in the scam were guilty.

"Prima facie, it appears some of those arrested are guilty. The court will have the last word and we must have faith in the judiciary. The best thing would have been to throw them out," Bandyopadhyay said.

However, Bandyopadhyay, a retired IAS officer, Saturday made a volte face claiming his comments were misinterpreted.

"My statement has been misinterpreted. I did not mean it. All I said was that dissenting voices were normal in any democratic party. Those of us who come from non-political background need to be extra careful in the future in what we say because our general statements are being misconstrued," Bandyopadhyay said in a statement.

"I am a soldier of the Trinamool Congress and a committed party worker. I joined the Trinamool inspired by Mamata Banerjee's honesty and organisational capabilities.

"There is no question of my leaving the partya," he said.