CBI verdict wait for Kunal

OUR BUREAU

Calcutta, April 27: Trinamul MP Kunal Ghosh's future in the party is expected to be decided after Calcutta High Court rules on two petitions by Saradha depositors seeking a CBI probe into the sham deposit-mobilisation scandal, party sources told The Telegraph. "Our leaders have been worried since the court indicated on April 25 that it was contemplating a CBI probe," a party source said. "(If action is taken now), Kunal may try to embarrass the party by naming senior leaders for their involvement with Saradha. If that happens before the hearing, the petitioners may cite this in court as another reason for a CBI probe." A meeting of the Trinamul general council has been called on May 3, the day the high court is likely to rule on the petition. The day before that, the government must submit an affidavit on the progress of the police investigation. Senior leaders could not remember the last time Mamata Banerjee had called a meeting of the general council, which includes cabinet ministers and party functionaries. "It will discuss the situation arising from the default crisis and the charges against Kunal and some other leaders," a senior minister said. Ghosh, the face of Saradha as its executive chairman (media) before he resigned this month, yesterday wrote to Mamata offering to resign as MP. In a purported letter to the CBI, Saradha chief Sudipta Sen has accused Ghosh and fellow Trinamul MP Srinjoy Bose of forcing money out of him. Sources said some other senior Trinamul leaders too had close contact with Saradha and "if the court orders a CBI probe, chances of their getting implicated are high". A second FIR with non-bailable charges was lodged against Ghosh today with Bhowanipore police, after one was lodged with Park Street police yesterday. The complainants are some of his former colleagues in Saradha-run newspapers and a TV channel. Legal experts said the back-to-back complaints would put pressure on the police to question Ghosh. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1130428/jsp/frontpage/story_16836951.jsp#.UX060qKBlA0