Supreme Court seeks Modi government response for imposing president's rule in Bengal

THE Supreme Court of India on Thursday (1) agreed to hear a plea seeking direction to the central government to impose presidential rule in the eastern state of West Bengal in view of the deteriorating law and order situation there following the local elections.

The plea also sought direction to the Narendra Modi government to deploy armed/paramilitary forces to bring normalcy in the state which has been witnessing violence since the results of the elections were announced on May 2.

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Incumbent chief minister Mamata Banerjee returned to power after her Trinamool Congress (TMC) registered a thumping victory while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of prime minister Narendra Modi finished a distant second. Leaders and supporters of the party, which is now the main opposition force in the state, have accused the ruling party of targeting them after the election results came out.

The Supreme Court of India (Photo: SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP/Getty Images).

A public interest litigation has also sought setting up of a special investigation team for probing the reasons for the post-poll violence in Bengal, which is known for its deadly party-level conflicts.

A bench comprising justices Vineet Saran and Dinesh Maheshwari issued a notice to the Centre, the state of West Bengal and the Election Commission of India on the plea which also sought to both the Modi and Banerjee governments to give compensation to the victims of the violence and their kin after assessing the nature of loss that they faced in the conflicts.

“We are issuing notice to respondent number 1, (Union of India), respondent number-2 (West Bengal government) and Respondent number 3 (Election Commission of India),” the bench said. It did not issue notice to respondent number 4 – Banerjee as the chief of the ruling TMC.

Advocate Hari Shankar Jain – appearing for petitioners Ranjana Agnihotri, a practicing lawyer based in the BJP-ruled state of Uttar Pradesh and social worker Jitender Singh – said the plea is against Bengal’s post-poll violence.

BJP supporters being targeted, it has been alleged

The plea filed through advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain said the litigation has been filed in extraordinary circumstances as thousands of residents of the state are being terrorised, penalised and tortured by members and workers of the ruling party for backing the BJP during the elections.

It was also alleged that in order to create terror in the society, at least 15 BJP workers/sympathisers/supporters have lost their lives while several were seriously injured but the government remained a mere spectator.

The plea sought from the top court “directing the central government to exercise its power conferred by Article 355 and Article 356 (of the Indian Constitution that deal with imposition of president’s rule) keeping in view the deteriorating condition posing a threat to sovereignty and integrity of India”.