Kolkata, Oct. 29 -- Former state Tourism and Cultural Affairs minister Indranil Sen has been remanded to police custody till November 10 after he was produced at the Bankshall Court on Thursday.
The order follows his high-profile arrest in connection with a multi-crore Durga Puja VIP pass and preview-show ticket scam.
On Thursday, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) rejected Sen's bail petition after the public prosecutor argued that custodial interrogation was essential to unearth the deep-rooted financial irregularities. Sen, a prominent singer-turned-TMC leader, was arrested on Wednesday evening from Salt Lake. The arrest took place immediately after he stepped out of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in CGO Complex, where he was facing a parallel round of questioning by the Central agency officials. Sen, who served as the Tourism and Cultural Affairs minister in the TMC led government, is accused of commercialising Durga Puja by illegally procuring and selling high-priced VIP preview passes. The FIR claims he and an organisation called MassArt Society, linked to his wife, Madhuchhanda Sen cheated citizens by falsely claiming a UNESCO association to sell tickets between 2022 and 2024.
Vehemently opposing the remand prayer, the defence counsel argued that the charges were entirely fabricated, malicious, and politically motivated, asserting the leader's complete innocence. The court however rejected the bail plea and granted 13 days police remand for Sen. The court also directed the investigative team to ensure regular medical examinations during the remand period.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.