A division bench of Calcutta High Court on Monday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of Sujay Krishna Bhadra, a key accused in the school recruitment irregularities case, who had already secured bail in the ED case but feared arrest by the CBI.

The division bench headed by Justice Joymalya Bagchi, while rejecting Bhadra’s bail plea, made it clear that the CBI would have the liberty to call Bhadra to its office for interrogation and seek his presence in the trial court to take him into custody if the situation so demanded.

The division bench, however, said that soon after arresting Bhadra, the CBI should produce him before the trial court. “Every arrested person should have the right of getting bail,” Justice Bagchi said.

On December 6, Justice Suvra Ghosh granted conditional bail to Bhadra in the ED case and rejected the prayer by the CBI to arrest him in the same case.

The CBI had prayed for an order to arrest Bhadra immediately so he could not be set free on bail.

But Justice Ghosh rejected the CBI plea and asked Bhadra to attend Vichar Bhawan on December 9, the court where the CBI’s petition against Bhadra was filed.

Bhadra had failed to appear before the court citing illness.

The trial court issued a production warrant and it was served to the Presidency Jail where Bhadra is lodged but the jail said it was not possible to produce him physically or virtually because of his prevailing health condition.

CBI counsel Dhiraj Trivedi told the high court during Monday’s hearing that the CBI would have arrested Bhadra had he attended the trial court.

Milan Mukherjee, the counsel appearing for Bhadra, opposed Trivedi’s claim and said: “Since a warrant of arrest has yet to be served against my client, there is no question of arrest”.

After hearing both sides, the division bench issued the order.

In connection with the ED case, Bhadra was produced virtually before the CBI court at Vichar Bhawan as a step to expedite the proceedings of the case as has been directed by the Supreme Court.