Mannan files SC contempt suit against Chandrima

KOLKATA: Disgruntled Congress leader Abdul Mannan may have stayed away from the party rally at Sahid Minar on Tuesday, but he is not pulling out of the solo legal battle he began against the Saradha scam.
Supreme Court will hear contempt petitions Mannan’s lawyers have filed against law minister Chandrima Bhattacharya and others for coming in the way of the CBI probe when an SC bench takes up the state government’s petition against CBI on January 27.
Mannan said that he got little support from Pradesh Congress in his court battle. “Former PCC chief Pradip Bhattacharya gave some financial support to me, but was against filing the case in my name. I had to convince an apolitical lawyer to file the case so that he doesn’t withdraw it under party pressure,” Mannan said. He refused to read much into party general secretary C P Joshi’s skipping the Sahid Minar meeting. “I came to know from his office on Monday that he is not coming,” Mannan said, refusing to comments on the Congress high command’s silence over Kapil Sibal’s taking the state’s brief.
Then why is Mannan staying away from Pradesh Congress programmes? “Why should I go to the meeting? I am not a hypocrite. What’s the use of holding hands on dais when the PCC president (Adhir Chowdhury) doesn’t have the courtesy to deal with a senior Congressman? I have never craved for a party post. Yet, some leaders in the district Congress criticized me in filthy language in my absence. The PCC president didn’t say a word to them,” Mannan said.
Calling himself a “most ordinary volunteer” of Congressm, Mannan parted ways with some sections of Congress who would like to have an understanding with Trinamool to keep BJP at bay. “I don’t know if this is what they are looking at. But it’s going to be a foolish decision. Trinamool is passing through its worst phase. Some of its leaders may switch to BJP. There is no use pampering Trinamool when BJP is getting strong. I’d rather want Congress to go with the Left,” Mannan said.
With his eyes on Supreme Court, he said: “Why did the state law minister stage the dharna in front of CBI office? Why did Trinamool supporters storm courtroom? These are efforts to stall the CBI probe. We will draw the apex court’s attention to all these incidents.”