The Calcutta High Court Monday dismissed the West Bengal government’s plea for recalling its order that directed the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to examine all cases of alleged human rights violations in post-poll violence in the state.
Rejecting the plea, a 5-judge bench headed by acting Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal observed that the June 18 order was passed after the state failed to inspire the court’s confidence. The bench, also comprising Justices Soumen Sen, Subrata Talukdar, IP Mukerji and Harish Tandon, said that the court does not find any occasion to modify or stay its earlier ruling.
The West Bengal government had claimed that it was not given adequate opportunity to place all facts on record, including the steps taken by the state government to address the issues relating to post-poll violence.
Earlier, the court had ordered the National Human Rights Commission to constitute a committee and visit those places where post-poll violence complaints were filed. The Bench also instructed that a member of the State legal Service Authority and State Human Rights Commission should be included in the committee and that the administration should provide the necessary logistics and other supports.
The court had to involve the NHRC because there were allegations that the police is not taking action, the Bench said, adding that the rights body had merely been told to file a report and that the government should not have any objection to it. “Your conduct, in this case, does not inspire the confidence of this court,” the acting Chief Justice said during the hearing.
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