Kolkata: A Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court, on Friday, withdrew the interim protection from coercive police action including arrest, in any new case, granted by a single-judge Bench of the same court to Milan Pradhan, the Congress’ candidate for the forthcoming bypolls for Nandigram Assembly Constituency in East Midnapore district of West Bengal.
Pradhan is in judicial custody now in two cases following orders of district courts in West Bengal. In a 2007 murder case, he was sent to judicial custody till October 3. In another case, a court sent him to jail till October 5.
On Thursday, the single-judge Bench of Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya ruled that barring these two cases for which Pradhan is already in judicial custody, the state police would be barred from registering any new case against him or showing him as arrested in any new case till October 12.
Immediately after that ruling by the single-judge Bench, the West Bengal government approached the Division Bench of Calcutta High Court’s Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge and Justice Om Narayan Rai, challenging the single-judge Bench order.
The matter came up for hearing on Friday and at the end of the hearing the said Division Bench withdrew the interim protection granted to Milan on Thursday by the single-judge Bench. The Chief Justice even asked on which legal provisions the single-judge Bench had granted the interim protection to Milan.
The Chief Justice also raised the question on why Milan pleaded for an interim protection instead of seeking an anticipatory bail.
The Chief Justice also observed that the Congress candidate had every right to contest the elections but not at the cost of violating the law.
According to the Chief Justice, the Congress candidate was not a special person just because he was contesting the elections. “Everyone is equal in the eyes of the law. There is no distinction between VIPs and common people,” the Chief Justice observed.
The bypolls for Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies will be held on October 6, and the results will be declared on October 9.
Pradhan was arrested on September 18 evening, hours after former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that the Trinamool Congress faction led by her would support the Congress candidate in Nandigram.
Banerjee’s announcement came shortly after her faction’s candidate, Sanchita Dey Pradhan, dramatically withdrew her nomination from Nandigram.
It was a fresh move towards Opposition unity in the state after her rout in the Assembly polls held in the state early this year.
(IANS)
