No coercive action against BJP leaders till next hearing: SC notice to Bengal govt

West Bengal, Dec 18: Supreme Court issued a notice to the ruling government of West Bengal and ordered no coercive action should be taken against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in connection with the cases lodged against them in the state on Friday.

The top court barred the West Bengal Police from taking any coercive action against BJP’s national vice president Mukul Roy, MPs Kailash Vijayvargiya, Arjun Singh, and two other BJP leaders till the next date of hearing in January 2021.

A three-judge bench, headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul heard the pleas filed by the West Bengal BJP leaders alleging “false FIRs” against them by the state police. The petitioners have alleged that the state govt was foisting criminal cases to deter them from carrying out political activities.

The Supreme Court also sought a reply from the Mamata-led government on four separate pleas filed by the BJP leaders. The bench posted the batch of pleas for further hearing in the second week of January.

Besides Roy, Vijayvargiya, and Singh, two other BJP leaders – Sourav Singh and Pawan Kumar Singh – have moved the apex court for protection in cases lodged against them in the state.

While granting protection to these five leaders, the bench directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to submit in a sealed cover a report regarding alleged scuffle between TMC workers and security staff of West Bengal Bhartiya Janta Party leader Kabir Shankar Bose, who has filed a separate plea in the top court.