New Delhi | Terming West Bengal the "most polarised state", the Supreme Court Thursday slammed the administration for its "complete failure" and inaction over the "deplorable" gherao and attack on seven judicial officers in Malda district during the electoral rolls revision drive and directed a CBI or NIA probe besides deployment of central forces in the poll-bound state.
In a scathing indictment, the top court said the incident "also exposes a complete failure of the state administration" and was a "brazen attempt not only to browbeat the judicial officers" but also amounted to challenging the Supreme Court's authority.
Dismissing the submissions that it was "apolitical protest", the Chief Justice Surya Kant-led bench said it was not a "routine incident. Rather, ex-facie a calculated, deliberate move to demoralise the judicial officers".
"If the protest was apolitical, then what were the political leaders doing? Was it not their duty to get to the spot and see what's happening? That somebody's trying to take law and order in their hands? At 5 o'clock, these people gheraoed the officers and till 11 PM, your collector was not there," the CJI said.
The court directed the Election Commission to requisition and deploy adequate central forces at locations where judicial officers have been assigned to adjudicate objections under the SIR process.
"We also direct the ECI to entrust the inquiry/ investigation into yesterday's incident to an independent agency, such as the Central Bureau of Investigation or the National Investigation Agency. Appropriate orders to this effect shall be passed during the course of the day. A compliance report regarding this shall also be submitted to this court. In this regard, we further direct the agency entrusted with the investigation to submit a preliminary inquiry report directly to this court," it ordered.
As many as 700 judicial officers from West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand are deployed in the ongoing SIR process to deal with over 60 lakh objections of those who are excluded from the voter lists during the SIR process.
The bench, also comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi, directed the chief secretary, the Director General of Police and the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal to submit a compliance report in pursuance of its directions.
"Additionally, the chief secretary, the DGP, the District Magistrate, Malda and the Superintendent of Police, Malda are also directed to show cause as to why suitable action should not be taken against them in light of the letter received from the Chief Justice of the High Court," it ordered.
The CJI directed all the top officials to appear before it online on April 6 when the bench will take up the pleas, including the one filed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Responding to the submissions of the advocate general of West Bengal that the poll panel should not be acting as an adversary in this matter, the CJI said, "Unfortunately in your state each one speaks political language and this is the most polarised state. You are forcing us to make observations. Do you think we are not aware of who the miscreants are? I was monitoring everything till 2 am. Very very unfortunate."
Senior advocate D S Naidu, appearing for the EC, said such "mobocracy" was not accepted. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta also termed the incident an "unacceptable" assault on the Supreme Court itself, as the judicial officers were performing the duty entrusted to them by the top court.
"We have no hesitation in observing that we will not permit any person to take the law into their own hands so as to create a climate of psychological fear in the minds of judicial officers who are discharging their duties. Such conduct, undoubtedly, amounts to criminal contempt within the meaning of Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971. Besides, it reflects a complete failure on the part of the civil and police administration, in so far as the law and order situation in Malda district is concerned," the bench ordered, adding the inaction of the officials was "highly deplorable".
It took suo motu cognisance of a letter from the Chief Justice of the high court detailing a harrowing night where judicial officers, including three women and a five-year-old child, were held captive by a mob for over nine hours without food or water.
The incident occurred during the SIR exercise in the Kaliachowk area of Malda district and as per the order, seven judicial officers were gheraoed by "anti-social elements" at a BDO office starting at 3:30 PM on Wednesday.
During the hearing, the CJI referred to the "shocking" timeline of the incident and said at 3:30 PM, gherao began and the Registrar General of the high court informed the state authorities immediately.
He went on and said till 8.30 PM, despite repeated pleas, no tangible action was taken by the state officials, he said.
"Nothing, however, was done till 8.30 PM. The Registrar General then contacted the Home Secretary and the DGP. Assurance was made for early action. But no action was taken by authorities. Even food and water was not permitted to be supplied to the judicial officers," the order noted.
The Chief Justice of the high court was forced to intervene personally, placing group calls to the home secretary and DGP.
The home secretary and the DGP arrived at the CJ's residence and the judicial officers, who were held hostage, were relieved post midnight.
Even after the rescue, the judicial officers' vehicles were pelted with stones and attacked with sticks and bricks, the CJI said.
"Shockingly, when the judicial officers were released around midnight and were returning to their respective places of stay, their vehicles were pelted with stones and attacked with bamboo sticks and bricks. In this light, the Hon'ble Chief Justice has strongly deprecated the delay on the part of the civil and police administration in taking appropriate action," he said.
"Till 11 o'clock, your Collector was not there. I had to verbally instruct very harsh orders in the night," the CJI said.
The bench noted its disappointment on perusing the letter of the HC Chief Justice, that the chief secretary could not be contacted, as he had not shared a mobile number with WhatsApp facility, as a result no communication could be conveyed to him.
The CJI was furious when a few lawyers tried to term the incident as a routine protest.
The bench also issued a slew of directions to ensure that no impediment is caused in the SIR process entrusted to judicial officers and to assure them that their life, liberty, property and family members will be protected.
"If any judicial officer has apprehension of security of his family, such threat perception to be immediately accessed and adequate measures to be taken," it ordered.
The poll panel to take all remedial measures to ensure safe and smooth functioning, it said, adding that more than five persons cannot be allowed to assemble where judges are working.
Kolkata | Just three weeks ahead of the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly election, protests over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls spread across several districts of the state on Thursday, with agitators blocking roads and highways over the deletion of names from poll lists.
Protesters burned tyres, blocked roads and held silent marches in Malda, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar and Purba Bardhaman, where voting will be held on April 23.
A day earlier, seven judicial officers, including three women, who were engaged in the electoral rolls revision exercise, were gheraoed in Malda district's Kaliachak. They were rescued by security forces after several hours.
Alleging large-scale deletion of voters' names, the protesters also blocked National Highway 12, connecting Kolkata and Siliguri, on Wednesday.
Latching on to the incidents, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah of drawing up a "blueprint of conspiracy" to foment unrest in the state and pave the way for President's rule ahead of the assembly elections.
Hours after the Kaliachak incident, which led the Supreme Court to describe West Bengal as "the most polarised state", protesters blocked NH-12 again, this time at Mangalbari area of the district on Thursday morning.
They set tyres on fire and erected bamboo barricades on the road, bringing traffic to a halt. A similar agitation was held at Jadupur in the English Bazar area.
"We have all the necessary documents, yet our names have been struck off the voter list. We want immediate rectification," a protester said.
The blockade at Mangalbari continued for nearly four hours. It was lifted after Malda Additional District Magistrate Sheikh Ansar Ahmed reached the spot and assured the protesters that their grievances would be looked into.
A police officer said, "When police personnel attempted to lift the blockade, they were attacked by protesters. Several police vehicles were vandalised, and a driver sustained head injuries."
"Security has been stepped up in the area," he added.
In Jalpaiguri's Maynaguri, locals blocked National Highway-27 at Husuldanga from Thursday morning, alleging that many genuine voters had been marked as "deleted" or kept under "adjudication" after the SIR exercise.
The blockade, since morning, brought the highway traffic to a standstill, with long queues of goods-carrying vehicles seen on both sides of the road.
Holding up placards, people raised slogans against the Election Commission and demanded that their names be put back on the electoral rolls.
Security forces, along with administrative officials, reached the spot and spoke to the protesters, but they refused to relent. The blockade on NH-27 was lifted hours later after prolonged negotiations.
Another group blocked the Maynaguri-Lataguri road. The Maynaguri-Dhupguri stretch of the Asian Highway was obstructed at Churabhandar by the locals.
The anti-SIR agitation has also spread to neighbouring Cooch Behar district, where residents of Madrasa More in Pachagarh gram panchayat area blocked the Cooch Behar-Mathabhanga state highway for nearly three hours.
They squatted on the road, burnt tyres, alleging that several names had "disappeared" from the electoral rolls and demanded an explanation from the authorities.
In Purba Bardhaman, a silent march was organised at Shaktigarh, where protesters claimed that many genuine voters have found their names missing from the poll rolls.
They later submitted a memorandum to the BDO of Bardhaman-II block, demanding immediate correction of the voters' list.
Against the backdrop of the fresh unrest, Chief Minister Banerjee accused Union Home Minister Shah of scripting a "blueprint of conspiracy" to foment unrest in the state and urged people not to fall into the "BJP's trap".
Addressing rallies at Sagardighi and Suti in Murshidabad district, she alleged that the Election Commission had failed to protect the judicial officers in Malda.
"My powers have been taken away, and Bengal has been defamed. Nobody from the administration even informed me about the Malda incident," she said.
Referring to the Supreme Court's observations on the Malda incident, Banerjee said the apex court had rightly criticised the administration.
The Supreme Court has described the gherao of the judicial officers as "deplorable" and ordered an independent probe by the CBI or the NIA into it.
While condemning the attack on the judicial officers, Banerjee maintained that people had the right to protest, but "no one should touch judges or judicial officers".
She also alleged that the Malda incident was being used by the BJP to "defame the whole of Bengal".