Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya,J. - (1.)The petitioner is a director of a company named Mark Enclave Private Limited, which is engaged in the business of purchase and sale of coal. In the course of its business, the petitioner's company purchased coal from various organisations, including the Eastern Coalfield Limited (ECL).
(2.)The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), respondent no.2 herein, started investigation on the basis of FIR No. RC 0102020A0022 dated November 27, 2020. As per the FIR, the suspected offence was criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust by public servants and criminal misconduct by public servants by dishonestly or fraudulently misappropriating the property entrusted to them or any property under their control as public servants or allowing other persons to do so. The FIR specified the place of occurrence of the offence as leasehold area of ECL under Kunustoria, Kajora area, District West Burdwan, corresponding Railway Sidings and other places. The petitioner was one of the accused persons named in the FIR.
(3.)Learned counsel for the petitioner challenges the FIR on several grounds. It is submitted that the consent given by the State of West Bengal under Section 6 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946 (hereinafter referred to as "the 1946 Act") on August 2, 1989, was withdrawn vide a subsequent Notification dated November 16, 2018 published in the Official Gazette. It is submitted that the extension of powers and jurisdiction of the CBI to any area (including Railway areas) in a State, granted by the Central Government under Section 5, is subject to consent of the concerned State Government under Section 6 of the 1946 Act. Thus, in view of the withdrawal of such consent by the State of West Bengal, the CBI had no authority to register FIR and conduct investigation pursuant to the same within West Bengal.