On Wednesday, February 14, the Supreme Court stayed the ongoing proceedings in various trial courts across West Bengal related to the heinous cases of murder, rape and crime against women and other human rights violations that happened in West Bengal in May 2021 after TMC returned to power.
A single-judge bench of Justice Sanjay Karol issued the judgment in response to CBI’s plea seeking transfer of the trials to any court outside West Bengal.
In its petition, the central agency alleged that witnesses and counsel were being intimidated, emphasizing the negative effects of this on the legal system. The CBI also argued that since complaints have been filed with state authorities no action has been taken which has necessitated judicial intervention.
Supreme Court stays proceedings in various courts in West Bengal dealing with the post-poll violence cases in the State.
— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) February 15, 2024
Order comes on a plea by CBI seeking transfer of the trials to any court outside the State, alleging threatening of witnesses and counsel amidst police's… pic.twitter.com/OOB83bZ3Tl
The CBI also cited a report from the National Human Rights Commission that suggested that all cases investigated by the CBI be tried outside of the state of West Bengal.
Issuing notice on CBI’s plea, which is returnable on March 11, the Supreme Court bench issued a stay on further trial proceedings in the cases specified in the probe agency’s petition.
Seeking the responses from the West Bengal government and parties in the original cases, Justice Sanjay Karol ordered, “Director General of Police, West Bengal is directed to ensure compliance of the order and also file his personal affidavit reporting compliance. In the meanwhile, further proceedings of the trial referred to in the prayer clause at page 58 onwards of the instant petition, shall remain stayed.”
Notably, in August 2021, the Calcutta High Court handed over the probe into the 2021 West Bengal post-poll violence to CBI. A five-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court comprising Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal, Justice IP Mukerji, Justice Harish Tandon, Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Subrata Talukdar had pronounced the judgement in a batch of petitions alleging Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government’s inaction over the brutal acts of violence unleashed by members of ruling Trinamool Congress in the aftermath of assembly elections.
Post poll violence in West Bengal
An umpteen number of violent incidents against political opponents were reported from the state of West Bengal in the aftermath of the 2021 state assembly polls. In an overwhelming number of such incidents, the victims had been BJP supporters and workers, while the accused were said to be the supporters of the TMC party. More than a dozen BJP workers had lost their lives in the post-poll violence that ensued following the victory of the TMC party in the assembly elections. In one such attack, TMC goons had lynched BJP worker Avijit Sarkar to death.
The violence unleashed against them forced hundreds of BJP party workers and supporters to flee their villages along with their families. They had crossed over to Assam, where they had been provided temporary shelter under the supervision of CM Himanta Biswa Sarma. However, it is not just the BJP but even CPI(M), which has accused the TMC of killing its workers. Reports of attacks on BSF jawans have also emerged in the media.
On June 2, 2021, a month after Mamata Banerjee came back to power, the BJP said 37 of its workers were killed in the post-poll violence that convulsed the state. In addition, some reports said women in West Bengal were raped, assaulted and, in some cases, even killed just because they adhered to a different political ideology.
A victim raped by the TMC goons in front of her father had shared her harrowing ordeal with OpIndia. She narrated how she was attacked and sexually assaulted by perpetrators associated with the TMC party.
