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Kolkata, 20 February (HS). The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday expressed surprise over the non-arrest of one Shahjahan, a criminal leader of Sandeshkhali. Chief Justice T.S. The division bench headed by Shivagananam on Tuesday raised questions on the working style of Bengal Police and said that a lot of things appear suspicious.
The bench said, “It is quite surprising that the person who is being said to be the root cause of this problem has still not been caught and is on the run, breaking the law.” The bench said that the court does not know whether he enjoys protection or not, the fact is that he has not been caught. “It could mean that the state police machinery does not have the means to apprehend him or (he) is beyond the jurisdiction of the state police,” the court said while hearing the state government's appeal challenging the single bench order. It is outside.”
The single bench had also banned the administration from imposing Section 144 in some areas of Sandeshkhali till further orders. A division bench headed by Chief Justice Shivagananam said a single bench of Justice Apoorva Sinha Roy had on February 12 taken suo motu cognizance of the allegations of sexual assault and forceful snatching of tribal land at gunpoint.
The division bench had said the court can take judicial cognizance of the fact that the problem arose after the Enforcement Directorate searched the premises of North 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad chief Shahjahan Sheikh in Sandeshkhali on January 5. It said that the state police has not been able to arrest Shahjahan even though several cases have been registered against him. He is accused of being attacked by ED officials when they conducted a search operation.
The court said that the establishment of a redressal mechanism by the state government on the allegations of forcibly snatching the land of the villagers in Sandeshkhali by setting up a camp prima facie shows that land grabbing has been done in the area. The Chief Justice said, “Prima facie the allegations are established that land owned by tribal villagers has been forcibly taken away in violation of legal formalities.” The bench observed that the administration was unnecessarily creating a stressful situation. He said that despite being unable to catch Shahjahan, mere imposition of Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure would have no effect. The bench directed that a notice be issued to the Advocate General representing the State and the Additional Solicitor General representing the Union of India be informed whereby the lawyers representing the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will be scheduled to hear the case. Be absent on the date i.e. next Monday.
The West Bengal government had filed an appeal before the division bench challenging the order passed on Monday by Justice Kaushik Chanda, who had stayed Section 144 imposed by the administration in Sandeshkhali till further orders. The division bench also comprising Justice Hiranmoy Bhattacharya directed the BJP leader to ensure that no supporters or persons associated with the party accompany him except the security personnel deployed for him. The division bench directed the Basirhat Superintendent of Police and the West Bengal government to comply with the orders issued by the single bench. He also ordered the Basirhat Superintendent of Police to file a report before the court on the next date of hearing regarding the number of criminal cases registered related to rape and sexual assault in the jurisdiction of Sandeshkhali police station from February 1, 2024 till date. Have given.