Calcutta High Court orders NHRC to probe human rights violation during post-poll violence in Bengal

By LE Desk

Kolkata, June 18, 2021: The Calcutta High Court today directed the Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to constitute a committee for examining all cases of alleged human rights violations in the recent post-poll violence in West Bengal.

A five-judge bench of the high court expressed dissatisfaction over the “ongoing post-poll violence” in West Bengal and “indifferent attitude of both the state government and State Legal Services Authority” in dealing with the issue, The Telegraph reported.

The bench, comprising Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justices I P Mukerji, Harish Tandon, Soumen Sen and Subrata Talukdar, was hearing a bunch of PILs levelling allegation of violence in the state following the Assembly elections whose results were announced last month.

The court directed that the committee will examine all the cases, the complaints of which have already been received by the NHRC or which may be received, and “may be by visiting the affected areas” and submit a comprehensive report to it about the present situation, news agency PTI reported.

The committee would also suggest the steps to be taken to ensure confidence of the people so that they can peacefully live in their houses and also carry on their occupation or business to earn livelihood, the bench said.

“The persons prima facie responsible for crime and the officers who maintained calculated silence on the issue, be pointed out,” the bench ordered, instructing that the matter would be taken up for hearing again on June 30.

The bench directed the state government to provide all logistic support to the committee wherever and whenever they wish to visit any place and to ensure there is no obstruction of any kind in this process.

“Such obstruction will be viewed seriously, which may entail action under the Contempt of Courts Act besides others,” the bench said in its order.

The court ordered that the Member Secretary of State Legal Services Authority will be a member of the committee to be set up by the chairperson of the NHRC and a representative from the State Human Rights Commission, West Bengal be also associated in it.

Noting that the complaints required immediate action, the bench said “somehow from the facts as are available on record and are sought to be projected by the petitioners, such an action is missing”.

“It is the duty of the state to maintain law and order in the state and inspire confidence in the residents of the state,” the bench observed.

The bench said that complaints with regard to post-poll violence received by the West Bengal State Legal Services Authority (WBSLSA) have been tabulated in six different categories. The member secretary of WBSLSA further mentioned that in a number of cases the complaints were referred to the concerned superintendent of police or the police stations but no response has been received, reported PTI.