The high court on Thursday declined to stay an order by a subordinate Calcutta court that had allowed police to conduct a voice sample test of BJP leader Mukul Roy in connection with the arrest in July last year of a Burrabazar trader from whom Rs 90 lakh had been seized.

“After seizing the cellphones of a few witnesses in that case, police had recovered clippings containing Roy’s purported voice. It was very relevant to the case,” said state public prosecutor Saswata Gopal Mukherjee on Thursday.

Roy had moved the high court in March seeking a stay on an order issued by the metropolitan magistrates’ court.

In his interim order on Thursday, Justice Rajasekhar Mantha also directed the police to preserve the report of Roy’s voice test in a sealed cover and to not use it in any investigation until the court allowed it.

Justice Mantha also sent the case to the chief justice asking him to assign another judge to dispose of the case, explaining that he was not sure of the legalities involved in admitting voice tests as evidence from witnesses.

A senior lawyer said clarification was required on the same issue since Roy was not a key accused in the case.