The Calcutta High Court on Friday withdrew its order that gave protection from arrest to former Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar in the multi-crore Saradha chit fund scam, PTI reported.

The court also rejected Kumar’s plea that sought the quashing of the Central Bureau of Investigation notice to him to appear before them.

After the order, the CBI served Kumar a notice to appear before it on Saturday for questioning, ANI reported.

The probe agency had earlier told the court that Kumar did not appear before it on frivolous grounds. Kumar, who is now additional director general of police and inspector general of police at the state’s Crime Investigation Department, had interim protection from arrest. He had claimed that he was being singled out for questioning by the agency.

Kumar had headed the Special Investigation Team set up by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to investigate the scam before the Supreme Court handed over the case to the Central Bureau of Intelligence in 2014. The agency wanted to interrogate him as he reportedly gave evasive replies during questioning in Shillong in February.

Kumar is accused of tampering with crucial evidence in the case.

The Saradha company ran several ponzi schemes in West Bengal, allegedly defrauding lakhs of people. Thousands of crores of rupees were lost after the scheme collapsed in 2013. Its promoter Sudipta Sen was arrested the same year.

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