SC Seeks Response From Centre, EC, WB Govt on Plea Seeking Prez Rule

Multiple instances of violence, loot and plunder have been reported across West Bengal since the election results.

Modi-Mamata Feud. Image used for representational purpose.

(Photo: The Quint)

The Supreme Court on Thursday, 1 July, consented to hear a petition seeking direction to the Centre to impose President's Rule in West Bengal in order to contain the allegedly inconducive law and order situation in the state, following the post-poll violence that was reported in May.

The plea was heard by a bench of Justices Vineet Saran and Dinesh Maheshwari, who have sent a notice to the Centre, West Bengal, and the Election Commission of India in relation to the petition.

Multiple instances of violence, loot and plunder have been reported across West Bengal since 2 May, after the results for the Legislative Assembly elections were declared and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) came back to power with a massive majority.

The PIL has been advanced by a social worker, Jitender Singh, and UP-based lawyer Ranjana Agnihotri, who were represented in the court by advocate Hari Shankar Jain.

The Plea

According to a PTI report, the plea, filed through advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, said that the PIL has been submitted in the interests of several residents of West Bengal, who are being penalised and persecuted, allegedly due to their lending of support to the Opposition party, BJP, during the Assembly elections.

"The petitioners are espousing the cause of thousands of citizens of West Bengal who are mostly Hindus and are being targeted by Muslims to take revenge for supporting BJP as they want to crush Hindus so that for years to come the power may remain with the party of their choice."

The Plea

The petitioners requested the apex court to direct "the central government to exercise its power conferred by Article 355 and Article 356 keeping in view the deteriorating condition posing a threat to sovereignty and integrity of India," as per a PTI report.

They further sought for direction to the Union government to deploy the armed forces in the state to ameliorate the tensions and bring normalcy to the West Bengal.

The PIL has also requested the institution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to look into the post-poll violence reported in West Bengal.

Post-Poll Violence in Bengal

Since the declaration of the election results for the West Bengal Legislative Assembly on 2 May, in which the Trinamool Congress (TMC) won with a thumping majority, reports of political violence in the state has come to the fore.

These reports, with gruesome accompanying visuals, have been condemned across the country, with many calling upon the TMC to curtail what is being called "victory violence."

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has claimed that several of its workers were killed by the TMC in the post-poll violence. Some BJP leaders have also given this a communal spin, stating that "Hindus were being attacked by Muslims".

Meanwhile, the TMC has also claimed that several of its workers have died in the violence.

(With inputs from PTI)