Madan Mitra visits CBI office

Kolkata, Sep 16 (IANS) Trinamool Congress leader and former West Bengal minister Madan Mitra, a Saradha scam accused now out on bail, on Friday visited the CBI office at Salt Lake as per the court's directive to appear before the investigating officer once every week.

Mitra, however, could not meet the investigating officer as the latter was in New Delhi, and left the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office after waiting for an hour. He returned to his hotel in Bhowanipore where he has put up in pursuance to court directions.

"I have always cooperated with the CBI and will do so in the future. I came here to visit them today," Mitra told reporters here.

Mitra had earlier moved to the Sessions Court with a plea to allow him to travel to Salt Lake to meet the investigating officer.

Mitra, who spent over 21 months in prison, was released from the Alipore Correctional Home (as prisons in the state are called) on Saturday. However, with the court asking him not to venture out of the domain of the Bhowanipore police station, Mitra has been spending his days at the hotel, and not at his residence which comes under the jurisdiction of Kalighat police station.

Mitra was behind bars since his arrest in the multi-billion rupee scam on December 12, 2014, except for a brief period in October 2015, when he was granted bail by a lower court. The relief was subsequently cancelled by the Calcutta High Court.

Last Friday, Additional District Judge, Alipore, Uttam Kumar Nandy granted Mitra's bail on twin bonds of Rs 15 lakh each. Besides depositing his passport with the CBI, the court has ordered Mitra to appear before the central agency on a periodic basis.

Indicted of cheating, conspiracy and criminal breach of trust, the former state Transport and Sports Minister was one of the most high-profile arrests in the Saradha scam after the CBI took over the probe.

Mitra had stepped down as minister on November 19 last year, hours before the Calcutta High Court eventually cancelled his bail.

With Mitra having resigned as a minister and also lost the assembly polls, his counsel were successful in convincing the court that he was no more an "influential persona".