Calcutta HC orders immediate CAPF deployment amid violence over Waqf Act
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Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Saturday ordered the urgent deployment of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) officers in West Bengal's minority-dominated Murshidabad district, where protests over the Waqf (Amendment) Act had turned violent. The violence resulted in at least three deaths.
Earlier on Saturday, the Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, approached the Calcutta High Court seeking CAPF deployment at Murshidabad and claimed the state police department was unable to keep the situation under control.
A special bench of Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury was constituted to hear the matter. After a detailed hearing on the matter, the special bench finally ordered the immediate deployment of CAPF deployment at Murshidabad, IANS reported.
In his petition, the leader of the opposition appealed for CAPF deployment in four districts namely Murshidabad, Hooghly, North 24 Parganas and Kolkata. However, finally, after a detailed hearing in the matter, the special division bench ultimately directed CAPF deployment only at Murshidabad district.
It has been learned that CAPF personnel, mainly those from the Border Security Force (BSF), are already deployed in the most troubled pockets in Murshidabad, like Suti, Samserganj and Dhulian, among others. And now, following the order of the special division bench, the same deployment will be throughout the district.
On Saturday, the counsel of the leader of the opposition had accused the state library services minister Siddiqulla Chowdhury of directly instigating violence through his provocative public speeches. He also said that the BSF personnel already deployed at certain pockets in Murshidabad district are not being properly utilised by the district magistrate concerned.
In this argument, the state government counsel and four-time Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member Kalyan Banerjee said that although the petition filed in the matter was politically motivated, the state government in principle did not oppose CAPF deployment at Murshidabad.
Thereafter, the special division bench ordered the CAPF deployment at Murshidabad and observed that the court could not remain silent, especially since the nature of complaints about the violence was so serious.
Expressing satisfaction over the Calcutta High Court order, BJP's Information Technology cell chief and the party's special observer for West Bengal Amit Malviya said in a statement that once Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the West Bengal Police have failed the people of the state.
"This should be deeply embarrassing for Mamata Banerjee, but she will likely pretend as if nothing happened and move on to planning for the next riot. A shameful display of conduct from a Chief Minister," the statement from Malviya read.
