Bengal forms team to probe Burdwan blast

 Despite the likelihood that the Centre would hand the Burdwan blast probe to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the West Bengal government continues to insist that the case should be investigated by the state agencies. 

Though Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has proposed that the probe be handed over to the NIA given that the terror links have almost been established, officials in Kolkata feel that the case should be left to the state, arguing that law and order is a concurrent subject over which the state has precedence. 

In the backdrop of the BJP claims of cover up and imminent take over of the case by the NIA, the state government has set up a composite task force under Director General of West Bengal Police G M P Reddy to investigate the case and coordinate with the state CID and the NIA. 

Announcing the formation of the special task force, state home secretary Basudeb Banerjee refuted allegations of non-cooperation on part of the state agencies. “Senior officials of both sides are in touch,” he said. 

An NIA official at the blast site told reporters that the agency has submitted a preliminary report to the MHA and, on clearance, would register an FIR suo motu and take over the probe.  “In such a scenario, the state government will be bound to hand over the case to us,” the official told reporters.

The fight for jurisdiction has taken a political turn with the BJP all set to hold rallies in favour of a NIA probe. 

Neither West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee nor other leaders of the Trinamool Congress issued any statement.