Stolen Nobel medal: Buddha dials Advani for a CBI inquiry

‘‘I tried to speak to PM Vajpayee but could not get him on phone. So I spoke to Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani whom I requested for the CBI inquiry. He told me to direct the state Home Secretary to put forward an official request which has already been done.

This is the second time in its 26-year-old rule that the Left Front has asked for a CBI enquiry into an incident, the first being the Purulia arms drop case 10 years back. Describing the incident as terrible and a national shame, Bhattacharya said: ‘‘We will have to be optimistic. And I can tell you there is basis in my optimism. I believe a joint central and state investigation will be able to make a breakthrough,’’ he said.

Bhattacharya however refused to divulge what progress the investigating team has made so far. ‘‘I will not tell you what progress we have made in our investigation. I cannot tell you how many have been arrested or how many have been detained. Because that will hamper the process of investigation,’’ the chief minister said. Today’s decision meets the demand of state opposition parties who have asked for a CBI inquiry. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee who visited Visvabharati yesterday and sat for a dharna said that only a CBI inquiry can solve it. A group of students belonging to TNC are still at dharna outside Ravindra Bhavan.