Investigative agencies tend to be slow on the powerful but quick on the common people: SC

Representative file image. | Photo credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap

The Supreme Court on Monday (Aug 31, 2026) said that investigative agencies drag their feet when it comes to investigating or questioning people in positions of power but do not turn a blind eye in cases involving ordinary people.

These observations were made by a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant while hearing a petition filed by Sumit Roy, personal assistant of Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, in connection with the Salboni land grabbing case.

In an earlier hearing, the Supreme Court stayed Mr. Roy’s arrest and ordered him to fully cooperate with the ongoing investigation.

Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, who appeared for Mr Roy, said his interrogation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was mainly about his family and political party activities.

“Certainly, at some point they should get to the crime I was accused of…” Mr. Sankaranarayanan said.

Appearing for the ED, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the ED had confronted Mr. Roy. The lawyer said the deposit of ₹2 crore was made by Mr. Roy.

“We fear that this bank deposit is only a fraction, the tip of the iceberg,” Mr Mehta said.

He strongly defended Mr Roy’s custodial interrogation, pointing out that around ₹30 crore was transferred to Leaps and Bounds Private Limited, which is linked to Mr Banerjee, who is the nephew of former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The company is under investigation by the ED for alleged financial irregularities.

Justice Joymalya Bagchi on the bench said “less said would be better” in the case of the ED probe into leaps and bounds.

Justice Bagchi said the Calcutta High Court judges had expressed considerable “dismay” at the slow pace of investigations and the lack of intensity in questioning those involved in the Leaps and Bounds case.

“In the normal prism of a criminal investigation, you don’t bat an eye to issue appropriate directions to enable the investigating authorities. But the next layer comes when the agencies probe the authorities for overlapping proceeds of crime investigations. At certain times they focus on custodial investigations and at other times they become active,” Justice Bagchi said.

Finally, Justice Bagchi said that the clarity and bonafides of the investigating agency concerned is suffering.

In this case, the Supreme Court directed the ED to produce video and audio recordings of Mr. Roy’s interrogation to verify whether he was confronted with questions about his alleged involvement in the land grabbing case.

“You asked him who gave him the money, where did he get it, who empowered him, how much did he get… Where are the questions? Show us the records,” Chief Justice Kant asked Mr. Mehta.

The next meeting is scheduled for September 7.

On August 3, the Supreme Court rejected Mr. Roy’s anticipatory bail application in connection with the case of alleged government land scam being investigated by the Salboni police.

A case has been registered under criminal provisions relating to cheating, criminal breach of trust, forgery, use of forged documents and criminal conspiracy.

The West Bengal government strongly opposed granting relief to Mr. Roy, saying his custodial interrogation was necessary for the investigation. The state said previous attempts to interrogate him in custody were foiled by the former chief minister.

Published – 31 Aug 2026 13:19 IST