Another petition landed before the Supreme Court on Wednesday on the trouble and killings that happened in West Bengal after the Assembly election results were declared on May 2.
Yesterday, a petition before the Vacation Bench of Justices Vineet Saran and BR Gavai had demanded an SIT or a CBI probe into the deaths of alleged BJP workers. The Court has issued notice on that.
Today’s petition, a similar one, seeks direction to the State of West Bengal to hand over the investigation and the case concerning the killings of suspected BJP workers/ supporters and the destruction of their properties by alleged goons of Trinamool Congress.
This petition, too, demands an SIT, to be set up by the apex court, with which the investigation should rest.
This petition is objectively directed towards President’s rule. The petitioner, Mumbai-based lawyer Ghanshyam Upadhyay, sought directions to the State to disassociate itself from an investigation of such cases. The petitioner also prayed for issuance of direction to the Governor, State of West Bengal, to submit his report to the top court under Article 356 of the Constitution of India so as to enable the Court to ascertain as to whether there is complete failure and breakdown of constitutional machinery in the Sate. The plea sought that if the top court is satisfied about a breakdown of law and order in the state, then it should declare so.
The petitioner also prayed for direction to the Union of India to invoke Article 355 of the Constitution of India for the State of West Bengal and thereby to give advice to the President to issue a proclamation for the State of West Bengal under Article 356(1) of the Constitution of India.
The petition relied on media reports to state that following the declaration of results of the assembly elections “massacre/killings of suspected BJP workers/supporters and destruction of their houses/properties” took place. The plea claimed that “the remaining workers/supporters of BJP and their families have been left with no other option than to leave their houses/residences and hide themselves (sic) to save their lives and limbs.”
The plea again relied on media reports to claim that “Media reports have further revealed that the incidents of killing of BJP workers and destruction of their properties by the people of TMC are still going on with complete impunity and the law enforcing agencies in the State have become silent spectators on account of tacit understanding with the ruling party i.e. TMC and its head Mamta (sic) Banerjee.”
The plea continued: “In a nutshell, from media reports, it is clearly discernible that there is subversion of Constitution by State Government while professing to work under the Constitution and the State ruled by the Respondent No.3/ Mamta (sic) Banerjee and her political party have been indulging in creating disunity and disaffection among the people of the State to disintegrate the democratic social fabric and in the process, have been resorting to subvert its basic feature/ democracy.”
The plea, interestingly, also said: “People in power who appear to have gone senile due to intoxication of powers (sic), have perhaps forgotten that there is something called ‘Supreme Court’ in our country which being highest constitutional court of the country will not remain silent spectator of such massacre of innocent persons by the goons of a political party…”
Source: ILNS