Outside, Trinamool supporters were raising hell. Diehard Madan men, clad in black bandanas, stormed into the court compound demanding his release and shouting slogans against PM Narendra Modi and BJP national chief Amit Shah. The slogans soon turned to "Narendra Modi r Amit Shah er chamra gutiye nebo (we will skin Modi and Shah)." And later, unprintable abuses.
As bedlam prevailed outside, a grim looking Madan stopped his lawyers and stood to defend himself before chief judicial magistrate Sanjeev Daruka. Till then, his supporters had shouted down CBI lawyer Partha Sarathi Dutta. His lawyer and Trinamool councillor Baishanar Chattopadhyay even told the magistrate that the "entire Alipore court Bar" was willing to stand guarantee for Madan if he is released on bail.
Madan then took over. Recalling his shock arrest, he said: "On November 17, I had to be admitted to hospital. I fell sick. I have to take many medicines daily. CBI had summoned me and I went there. Everything went fine. At 4:30pm (on Friday), CBI joint director Rajeev Singh offered me a cup of tea and said my statement was being typed. He told me I could step out in 15 minutes and I would have to come back again if required. I called my lawyers to inform this. It was then that a gentleman came in and told me: "Sorry, sir. There are orders from Delhi. We cannot let you go. You are in our custody."
However, based on CBI's 'forwarding note' and the penal sections (420, 409 and 120B IPC), the magistrate turned down the bail plea and sent Madan to four-day CBI remand. Madan's lawyer Niladri Bhattacharjee can be present when he is questioned by CBI.
The court proceedings were overshadowed by the ruckus outside. Iqbal Ansari, a small-time trader, was among several hundred protesters who had come over from Kamarhati (Madan's assembly constituency). They reached the court premises at 11am - four hours before Madan was brought in. "Name me a minister in Bengal who is so accessible. I have his cellphone number and can call him any time for any help. A few days back, two children drowned in the Ganges. I informed him about it. In an hour, he was at the children's home, consoling their parents. Why should I not support such a person? This (arrest) is wrong," screamed Iqbal.
Around 2.45pm, when a Bolero carrying Mitra tried to enter the court, his supporters ran amok. They broke through police barricades, stopped the two-car convoy and some even clambered on the bonnet. The bedlam was spinning out of control when police finally shook off their stupor and cleared a way for the convoy.
More dramatic scenes were to follow. Near the courtroom entrance, the vehicle was stopped again and rose petals were showered on Madan as he stepped out. But his face showed no emotion. Still a minister, he was not put in the court lock-up and instead taken straight to the courtroom. When his case came up, Madan was escorted to the witness box.
His supporters had by then swamped the courtroom too. A battery of lawyers led by senior counsel Asoke Mukherjee, Chattopadhyay and Mitra's advocate-on-record Niladri Bhattacharjee stood up the moment CBI submitted the case dairy. "He was summoned as a witness under 160 CrPC. He complied. Why was he arrested? It is illegal," Mukherjee said, appealing for bail. Bhattacharjee added, "His statement was being recorded and he agreed to comply (with) all directions. This is nothing but political conspiracy." It was then Madan stopped them and requested the magistrate to allow to him to speak. The plea was allowed.
During the hour-and-a-half courtroom deliberations, sounds of constant clapping and sloganeering trickled in from outside. It stopped for a short while when azaan was heard from a nearby mosque. The magistrate then passed the order.
There was more pandemonium as Madan was whisked out. When realization dawned that their leader will spend the next four days in CBI remand, anger surged. When the CBI vehicle tried to nudge ahead, some supporters smashed its rear lights. The front windscreen of another police vehicle was broken. The crowd surged to block the vehicle. Police again moved in to chase away the protesters. At the CGO complex, more Madan men were waiting. Stepping into another night in lock-up, Mitra said, "I am a victim of political conspiracy."
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