Chitfund Scam: Supreme Court seeks West Bengal's reply on CBI's plea for more manpower

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday sought a response from West Bengal government on a fresh plea of CBI that it needed more hands from the state police, including ten Superintendent of Police (SPs), to probe the multi-crore rupees chit-fund scam cases.

"You (West Bengal's counsel) take instruction. We will hear it again on Monday (July 27) ," a bench of justices TS Thakur and C Nagappan said.

Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar and Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh, appearing for the probe agency, said that as many as 971 cases have been registered, of which 464 matters related to non-Saradha chit-fund firms.

At present, the chit-fund cases were spread over in various trial courts across the state and the CBI wanted three special courts in Kolkata to deal with them, the Solicitor General said.

He also said the CBI needed police force, including ten SPs, from the state to efficiently probe the scam cases.

Senior advocate L Nageshwar Rao, appearing for West Bengal, said though the state police does not want to probe any chit fund cases, it may consider CBI's demand for more policemen for the investigation.

The bench, which fixed the matter for hearing on July 27, also agreed to hear some applications filed in the Odisha chit-fund scam case on that day.

Earlier, the court had taken strong note of CBI's submission that it lacked manpower to handle all the chit-fund scam cases.

As per our earlier order, the entire investigation was transferred to the CBI and now, "you (CBI) cannot decline to take up all the cases without seeking modification of the order," it had said, adding "a plain reading of our earlier order says that all the cases stand transferred to CBI."

However, the bench had clarified that the CBI may seek modification of its earlier order.

The apex court, on May 9 last year, had ordered CBI probe into the chit-fund scams in West Bengal, Odisha and Assam allegedly involving various companies including Saradha, while taking note of allegations that scamsters were getting "patronage" of people in "high positions".