Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress on Friday demanded the removal of Tushar Mehta as the Solicitor General of India on account of his meeting with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Suvendu Adhikari, leader of the opposition leader in the West Bengal assembly. To this end, the Trinamool penned a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the immediate removal of Mehta from his post.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's meeting with BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari raises "some serious questions about the integrity of the post", said Trinamool on this day. The letter, which was sent to Prime Minister Modi seeking the Solicitor General's removal was signed by three TMC MPs -- Derek O'Brien, Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, and Mahua Moitra.
The letter said that Suvendu Adhikari, in addition to being a BJP leader, is also accused of various offences being investigated by the CBI and the ED. One of such cases is the Narada sting operation case, in which Adhikari was seen taking bribes in videos once publicly circulated by the BJP. The other is the Sarada chit fund case, where the key accused Sudipta Sen had raised grave allegations against Adhikari. In both these cases, the TMC noted, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta is representing the CBI and has appeared before the judiciary in that regard.
{{/usCountry}}The letter said that Suvendu Adhikari, in addition to being a BJP leader, is also accused of various offences being investigated by the CBI and the ED. One of such cases is the Narada sting operation case, in which Adhikari was seen taking bribes in videos once publicly circulated by the BJP. The other is the Sarada chit fund case, where the key accused Sudipta Sen had raised grave allegations against Adhikari. In both these cases, the TMC noted, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta is representing the CBI and has appeared before the judiciary in that regard.
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As such, the "various news reports containing videos" about the alleged meeting between Adhikari and Mehta, who is advising such investigative agencies, show that there is a "direct conflict of interest" with the statutory duties of the Solicitor General of India.
In addition to news reports, the TMC in its letter also cited tweets by prominent personalities, who have questioned such a meeting. The letter also observed that the meeting, "curiously", took place right after Suvendu Adhikari met Union home minister Amit Shah.
"We have, therefore, reasons to believe that such a meeting has been organised to influence the outcome of matters where Suvendu Adhikari is an accused, using the high offices of the Learned Solicitor General," the TMC letter mentioned. Thereby, the party demanded from the Prime Minister that Tushkar Mehta be removed from his posts in light of these developments.