Petitions seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into the post-poll violence in West Bengal in May are misleading and political...
Petitions seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into the post-poll violence in West Bengal in May are misleading and politically motivated, the state government alleged in an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court on Monday, the Hindustan Times reported.
The Supreme Court was hearing two petitions demanding an independent inquiry into the alleged killing of Bharatiya Janata Party workers by those associated with the Trinamool Congress after the results of the Assembly election on May 2.
The petitioners also accused the West Bengal government and the police of inaction and even complicity in the violence, and sought rehabilitation and compensation for those displaced by the violence.
Nirmalya Ghoshal, West Bengal home department additional secretary, informed the court in the affidavit that 22 people were killed in post-poll violence between May 2 and May 9.
Ghoshal pointed out that most of the deaths took place when the West Bengal police were under the Election Commission’s control because of the Model Code of Conduct being in place. “The ECI [Election Commission of India] was in charge of the law and order situation in the state till the MCC [Model Code of Conduct] was lifted,” Ghoshal said.
The official claimed in the affidavit that incidents of violence went down drastically after...
