By IANS
Kolkata : A West Bengal court Thursday again rejected the bail plea of Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Suhrid Dutta, who was arrested last month for the rape and murder of Singur girl Tapasi Malik. He was remanded in judicial custody for a fortnight.
The Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM) court of Chandannagore remanded Dutta, a Left leader from Singur, in judicial custody till Aug 9.
Dutta's lawyers had said the case should be taken from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and handed over to any other investigating agency.
Dutta's lawyer had earlier accused the CBI of violating the human rights of the CPI-M leader in their custody. The bail plea had been rejected and the Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate of Chandannagore Pradip Banerjee remanded Dutta in judicial custody till July 26.
The CPI-M leader was arrested following interrogation of party worker Debu Malik, one of the prime accused in the murder of the Singur girl whose charred body was found inside the fenced off area of the Tata Motors small car project Dec 18.
Tapasi Malik was on the forefront of a movement protesting land acquisition for Tata Motors' factory in Singur in Hooghly district, 40 km from here.
Dutta's arrest triggered angry reactions from the CPI-M with even communist patriarch Jyoti Basu commenting that CBI was traditionally against the Leftists.
Supporters of the Trinamool Congress and the Congress party staged agitation outside the court premises Thursday demanding exemplary punishment of Suhrid Dutta in Tapasi Malik murder case.
A huge contingent of police force was deployed there with water cannon and the entire area was cordoned off to tackle any untoward situation.
Around 997 acres of farmland in Singur have been chosen by Tata Motors for its small car project. The issue has triggered a violent face-off between the government and farmers led by civil society groups and parties like the Trinamool Congress.