Ram Navami clashes: Calcutta HC expresses ire over Mamata govt’s desperation to stop NIA probe

Kolkata, July 31 (IANS) Calcutta High Court's single- judge bench of Justice Jay Sengupta on Monday expressed ire over the constant efforts by the West Bengal government to stop National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe on the clashes over the Ram Navami procession this year.

After the division bench of Calcutta High Court’s Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya ordered an NIA probe on April 27, the state government moved the Supreme Court challenging the order. However, early this month the apex court upheld the order of the Calcutta High Court’s division bench and directed the state government to cooperate with the central investigative agency in the matter.

Thereafter, the state government filed a fresh application at the Calcutta High Court asking for quashing of the NIA probe in the matter. As the matter came up for hearing at the bench of Justice Sengupta on Monday, the latter expressed anguish over the constant efforts by the West Bengal government to stop the NIA probe.

“You have spent lakhs of rupees in approaching the Supreme Court to stay the NIA probe first. Now when the apex court order has not gone in your favour you are filing a fresh case. This cannot continue,” Justice Sengupta observed.

He said that he will hear the matter only after the state government takes steps to implement the order of the Supreme Court. “It is unacceptable that the state government will bypass the Supreme Court order and delay in implementing the original order in the matter,” he said.

Already NIA has approached the Calcutta High Court a number of times accusing the state administration of not cooperating with the central agency in the probe process. The NIA has also accused the state police of unnecessarily delaying the process of handover of the case-related documents to the central agency sleuths.

--IANS

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