Calcutta HC bins TMC plan to gherao BJP leaders’ homes

The Calcutta High Court on Monday restrained the ruling Trinamool Congress’ August 5 programme to gherao homes of BJP leaders in West Bengal. It refused to permit any rally or action as publicly announced by Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee and affirmed by party chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
It said: “Such a protest or action as commanded by the seventh respondent (Abhishek Banerjee) and affirmed by the sixth respondent (Mamata Banerjee) would undoubtedly be against public interest. Therefore, the respondents are restrained from holding any protest or rally or gherao in any manner inconveniencing the general public,” said the Division Bench presided over by Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam.
Petitioner Suvendu Adhikari, the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly submitted video proof to substantiate his charge that while TMC’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee called for the gherao from the TMC’s July 21 rally, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had supported the call in her speech from the same dais.
The Chief Justice made scathing observations regarding the matter. “The bottomline is that you are not concerned about the public. You are not concerned about the office-goers. Might is right. Such statements come from people holding high constitutional offices. Do you say that such statements should be brushed aside? If, suppose, a thousand people, two thousand people gather, and gherao a particular person, do you mean to say that only that particular person alone is going to be affected? And nobody in an around will be affected? If somebody says I am going to plant a bomb at 3 pm at such and such a place, will the State not take any action? The state needs to take some action. This is going beyond the limits,” he said.
“Such action by any section of society is against public interest. A normal person making a statement and a person holding high constitutional office makes a world of difference.
Abhishek Banerjee, the Trinamool’s Diamond Harbour MP, had called for a gherao of houses of all BJP leaders to demand the release of funds due to West Bengal by the Centre.
The Court directed the respondents to file affidavits in support of their contention against the PIL by Adhikari within 10 days, and said that the matter will be heard again after two weeks.