Calcutta HC orders CBI probe into Midnapore massacre

Calcutta HC orders CBI probe into Midnapore massacre
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

KOLKATA, MARCH 30: In a judgement that might have far-reaching impact, a division bench of the Calcutta High Court headed by Chief Justice Ashok Kumar Mathur today ordered a CBI inquiry into the alleged massacre of January 4 at Chhota Anguria village in Midnapore district. The High Court order came following a PIL lodged by the Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights of the Trinamool Congress soon after the massacre.

The killings had snowballed into a major controversy first between the Trinamool Congress and the ruling Marxists in Bengal and then between the National Human Rights Commission and the West Bengal State Human Rights Commission.

In an earlier case, the Calcutta High Court had admitted a habeas corpus appeal from a relative of Vikhari Paswan, a worker of Telenipara Jute Mill in Hooghly, who was alleged to have been picked up by a police party in November, 1993 and has not been traced since then. The CBI had investigated the case and in its report, corroborated the charge that a police party did pick up Vikhari from his house and he remains untraced ever since.

In the present case, the petitioners had alleged in the PIL lodged on January 10 that at least 11 Trinamool supporters were massacred by CPI(M) cadres at Chhota Anguria on January 4. Kalyan Banerjee, a High Court advocate and the Trinamool candidate for the coming Assembly polls from Asansol argued that ``the bodies of the slain persons were not only removed but could not be traced at all. There was no rule of law''.

Justice Mathur and Justice Girish Gupta had sought reports from the state CID and the NHRC before delivering their judgement. But they clearly indicated their dissatisfaction over the CID report. The bench observed: ``There was no clear investigation at all. Three months have elapsed and the state CID could neither trace out the dead bodies nor have arrested the FIR named persons, excepting one. The court also considered the reports submitted by the state CID and the NHRC. The court felt that to do complete justice and install confidence in the minds of the people, investigation by the CBI is required in the present case. It ordered the DG, CBI to depute one official not below the rank of an SP to conduct the inquiry and submit a report within three months.''

Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee hailed the division bench order saying: ``It is a moral victory. The Trinamool Congress' stand regarding the massacre has been vindicated. After this Buddhadev Bhattacharya has no moral right to stick to his chair. The LF government must go.''

Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya said the state government would file a special leave petition before the Supreme Court to challenge the order of the division bench. ``Principally, we are against CBI intervention,'' Bhattacharya said, ``because the state government considered organisations like the CID or the CBI as independent. There is no reason to believe that a CID inquiry was influenced by the government.''

In the course of the hearing, the bench sharply criticised the investigation conducted by the CID and categorically said that the court found some of its findings recorded in the report unacceptable. Naranarayan Gooptu, Advocate General, West Bengal pleaded for more time from the bench for completion of the investigation and urged for stay of operation of the High Court order. The bench, however, refused to accept his plea.

Meanwhile, Additional Director, CBI, Kolkata, Dr Upen Biswas said that the order of the Honourable High Court was yet to reach the office. ``We will respond accordingly after receipt of the order,'' Biswas added.