Repeatedly subjected to harassment by police: Bengal BJP chief petitions Calcutta HC

Kolkata, July 2 (IANS) Union Minister and the state BJP president in West Bengal, Sukanta Majumdar, on Wednesday, approached the single-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court accusing the West Bengal Police of excesses against him through repeated and unnecessary harassment.

The single-judge bench of Justice Tirthankar Ghosh has admitted the petition. The matter is expected to come up for hearing during the current week only.

During the last couple of months, there have been several instances of a faceoff between Majumdar and the police. Last month after his convoy was attacked at Diamond Harbour in South 24 Parganas district allegedly by Trinamool Congress activists, he accused the police force present at the spot, including Diamond Harbour Police District superintendent Rahul Goswami and the SDPO of Diamond Harbour, of refraining from taking any preventive or protective action to prevent the attack.

Majumdar said the attack posed a direct and serious threat to his life and the lives of those present at that time.

Last week, he was detained by the Kolkata Police while he was protesting on the street against the gang-rape of a law college student within her college premises at Kasba in South Kolkata. He was detained at the city police headquarters throughout the night, and the next morning was asked to leave, even though Majumdar refused to sign the bail bond, which the cops insisted upon.

Recently, Majumdar also sent a letter to the City Police Commissioner, Manoj Kumar Verma, accusing frequent police excesses against him. Failing to get a reply from Verma, Majumdar added, he decided to file the petition at the Calcutta High Court.

According to him, the police forces in West Bengal become hyperactive only when it comes to the question of opposition parties or in cases of spontaneous mass movement against the ruling dispensation or the state government.

However, the same police become inactive when it comes to addressing criminal activities by goons associated with the Trinamool Congress.

He also posted on X after petitioning the court. He wrote: "At the behest of the ruling Trinamool Congress, I have been repeatedly subjected to harassment by the @KolkataPolice. Despite having written to the @CPKolkata earlier, my concerns were met with silence. Today, I have filed a petition before the Hon’ble Calcutta High Court challenging this blatant abuse of police authority and the unconstitutional suppression of the rights of opposition parties in West Bengal."

--IANS

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