Calcutta HC judge steps aside from Tulu Mondal revision pleas
A Calcutta High Court single Bench recused itself from four criminal revision applications by alleged sand trader Tulu Mondal, sending them to the Chief Justice.
A single Bench of the Calcutta High Court on Monday recused itself from hearing four criminal revision applications filed by Md. Nazibuddin Mondal, an alleged illegal sand and stone trader known as Tulu Mondal.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya released the matters from his court and directed that they be placed before the Chief Justice for appropriate orders.
The judge acted because he had already dismissed a similar petition by Mondal on September 22. That application had challenged an arrest warrant and a proclamation declaring him a fugitive, issued by a lower court. In dismissing it, the Court noted that Mondal had left India on May 23, and that there was therefore no reason to interfere with the lower court's orders.
The four applications had earlier been released on September 21 by a coordinate Bench of the High Court, which cited the pendency of other matters concerning Mondal before Justice Bhattacharyya's court. They were subsequently assigned to him.
Justice Bhattacharyya observed that, following the disposal of a quashing application, no other matter concerning Mondal remained pending before his court. On that basis, he directed that the four applications be released and placed before the Chief Justice.
Separately, police have seized 5 kg of gold bars and more than ₹28.53 crore in cash — a total of nearly ₹50 crore — from the residence of a person described as Mondal's alleged associate at Mohammad Bazar in West Bengal's Birbhum district.