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The Calcutta High Court on Friday ordered the chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to constitute a committee to examine complaints by persons displaced by post poll violence in West Bengal as that resulted in human rights violations and loss of lives and property.
“The Committee shall examine all the cases and may be by visiting the affected areas and submit a comprehensive report to this Court about the present situation and also the steps to be taken to ensure confidence of the people that they can peacefully live in their houses and also carry on their occupation or business to earn their livelihood.” – Observed the Court.
The Full Bench of Acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice(s) I.P. Mukerji, Harish Tandon, Soumen Sen and Subrata Talukdar observed that, “State from the very beginning had been denying everything but the facts as have been placed on record by the petitioners and also as is evident little bit from the report dated June 3, 2021 filed by the Member Secretary of the West Bengal State Legal Services Authority, are different.”
The Bench further noted that, the persons who are prima facie responsible for crime and the officers who maintained calculated silence on the issue, must be pointed out and a representative from the State Human Rights Commission, West Bengal should also be associated by the National Human Rights Commission.
“The State shall ensure there is no obstruction of any kind in this process. Such obstruction shall be viewed seriously, which may entail action under the Contempt of Courts Act besides others”, observed the Bench.
The court was considering a batch of petitions alleging migration, loss of livelihood, death on account of post-poll violence. One petitioner Priyanka Tibrewal submitted that, “there are lot of issues which have not been addressed by the State despite raised in various petitions pending in this Court. People are facing difficulties. Even the persons, who have been reinstated back, are being threatened again, whereas some had still not being able to come back.”
The petitioner further added that, “the effect of this inaction on the part of the State is also that these people are not able to earn their livelihood and get benefits in terms of various employment schemes framed by the Central Government or the State Government. The complaints filed by them to the police are not being acted upon, they are being threatened with cross cases.”
Similar contentions were raised in other pleas too to the Bench. However, the Advocate General Kishore Datta referred to a report by Member Secretary of the West Bengal State Legal Services Authority dated June 3, 2021, that noted the State was making all efforts to reinstate all the persons who had allegedly been displaced after the State Assembly Polls.
He further submitted that, “it is difficult to respond to the allegation that after reinstatement of the persons who are allegedly displaced some threat has been made to them” and also would also file a response for the allegations made by Ms. Priyanka Tibrewal in the affidavit filed by her and in other petition.
The AG further stated that the Member Secretary of the West Bengal State Legal Services Authority tabulated the complaints in six different categories:
Accordingly, in the table attached to the report it was mentioned that the number of persons who had reported suffering is 3,243 with reference to the complaints received till 12 noon on June 10, 2021 and the complaints were referred to the concerned Superintendent of Police or the police stations but no response has been received.
Bench further observed that, though action should have been taken by the State but despite matter being pending in Court apparently no concrete steps have been taken.
“Affidavits after affidavits being filed by the petitioners raising grievances which have briefly been noticed in the arguments of the learned counsel for the petitioners. Where it is alleged that though they have been reinstated back to their houses but are being threatened again with cross cases being filed against them or they are compelled to write that they have not made any complaints or their right to livelihood is sought to be effected in the manner noticed above.”-observed the Bench.
Lastly, the Bench directed that, the State shall be at liberty to respond to the allegations made in the affidavits sought to be referred by learned counsels for the petitioners and also process the complaints referred to by the Member Secretary of the West Bengal State Legal Services Authority in compilation where no response was received from the State despite that the complaints were sent to the competent authority.
The matter will be next heard on 30th June, 2021.
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