The Calcutta High Court revoked the blanket protection granted to Opposition Leader in the Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari on last Friday, 24 October. Based on any new allegations, the state can file FIRs against Suvendu. The High Court has directed the state government and CBI to jointly form a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and start an investigation into four cases already filed against him.
However, on Wednesday, the state government itself gave temporary relief to the Opposition Leader in the Assembly in these four cases at the Calcutta High Court. Among these four cases is Minister Birbaha Hansda's case against Suvendu Adhikari under the SC-ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. Birbaha's brother also filed a separate complaint. Suvendu appealed to the High Court seeking dismissal of the case. During the hearing of the case in the High Court, the state informed that no action will be taken against Suvendu immediately.
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State Minister Birbaha Hansda filed a complaint alleging that Suvendu Adhikari made derogatory remarks using her name in Netai, Jhargram, in 2021, and the video of those derogatory remarks went viral. Her brother also filed a separate complaint. During the hearing of Suvendu's application in the High Court seeking dismissal of the case, state lawyer Kalyan Bandyopadhyay informed today that the state will not take any action in this case immediately.
Justice Jay Sengupta directed that the police to present the case diary of the case in court at the next hearing on November 11, and before that, notice will have to be given to the main complainant of the case. The state applied for not giving any protection to the accused. Justice Sengupta said that this court will decide on whether to allow him protection or not only after hearing the statement of the main complainant.
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Again, the court directed to keep the investigation suspended in two cases against Suvendu at Sankrail police station in Jhargram and Beleghata police station in Kolkata. The state also informed that they are not going to take any immediate action in those two cases. The High Court directed that the police will have to present the case diaries of these two cases to the Court on November 11 as well.
