Despite a Calcutta High Court order to the police’s criminal investigation department, or CID, on Tuesday, the Bengal government has refused to hand over custody of Sheikh Shahjahan, the former Trinamool strongman accused of extortion, land grab, and sexual assault in Bengal’s Sandeshkhali, to the CBI.
The police were instructed by the court to hand over Shahjahan’s custody along with the case files by 4:30 p.m on Wednesday. An empty-handed CBI team left the Kolkata police headquarters at 7:30 p.m. The state has petitioned the Supreme Court, so until the court renders a decision, Sheik Shahjahan cannot be released.

The government of Bengal had requested an urgent hearing, but it was denied. Senior attorney Abhishek Singhvi, representing the state, was instructed by the Supreme Court to make its argument before the Registrar-General in compliance with the regulations.
The state police were deemed “totally biased” by the High Court earlier today, which also demanded a “fair, honest, and complete investigation” into Shahjahan’s alleged crimes. “There can be no better case than this… which requires to be transferred (and) to be investigated by the CBI,” it stated.

A previous order forming a special investigative team consisting of state police and CBI officials was overturned by a High Court bench led by Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam, and the case was moved to the central agency.

The state and the Enforcement Directorate filed separate challenges to that order; the state wanted the police to conduct the investigation, while the ED wanted the case to be assigned to the CBI exclusively.

Since a group of Sheikh Shahjahan’s supporters attacked a group of Enforcement Directorate officials on January 5 while they were traveling to carry out raids, the man had gone missing.
After being on the run for 55 days, Shahjahan was apprehended by a special police squad and his membership in the Trinamool was suspended for a period of six years. Three days after the High Court’s order, he was taken into custody.