Back
2022 Supreme(Cal) 157
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT CALCUTTA
PRAKASH SHRIVASTAVA, RAJARSHI BHARADWAJ, JJ.
Susmita Saha Dutta And Others — Appellant
Versus
Union Of India And Others — Respondent
WPA(P) No. 142 of 2021, CAN No. 1, 3 of 2021, CAN No. 5 of 2022
Decided on : 19-04-2022
Mr. Uday Shankar Chattopadhyay, Mr. Sankar Prasad Dalapati, Mr. Debopriya Samanata, Mr. Sourav Mallick, Advocates, Ms. Priyanka Tibrewal, Mr. Sushil Mishra, Mr. Manabendranath Bandyopadhyay, Mr. Debu Chowdhury, Mr. Bikash Kr. Singh, Advocates, Mr. Y.J. Dastoor, Additional Solicitor General, Ms. Amrita Pandey, Mr. Arijit Majumdar, Advocates
The court emphasized the importance of correcting factual averments, ensuring the protection of affected persons, and streamlining the legal process by dispensing with the presence of unnecessary parties.
Headnote:
Supplementary Affidavit - Correction of Factual Averments - The court considered the correction of incorrect factual averments made in a supplementary affidavit filed on behalf of the CBI, including the registration of cases and the status reports submitted by the CBI and SIT. The petitioner also filed affidavits related to persons affected by the violence and requested police protection and the formation of a committee to ascertain the real position.
Fact of the Case:
The court considered the correction of incorrect factual averments made in a supplementary affidavit filed on behalf of the CBI, the status reports submitted by the CBI and SIT, and the petitioner's request for police protection and the formation of a committee to ascertain the real position.
Finding of the Court:
The court directed the petitioner to provide a complete set of affidavits to the Advocate General and the DG & IG of Police, and instructed the DG & IG of Police to ensure that the affected persons are not harassed. The court also directed the petitioner to serve a copy of the petition to the concerned parties and to provide complete details of persons who have not been permitted to return to their houses. The presence of the Election Commission of India in the case was dispensed with.
Issues: Correction of factual averments, status reports by CBI and SIT, request for police protection, formation of a committee, service of petition copy, and presence of Election Commission of India in the case.
Ratio Decidendi: The court focused on addressing the correction of factual averments, ensuring the protection of affected persons, and streamlining the legal process by dispensing with the presence of the Election Commission of India.
Final Decision: The court directed the necessary parties to take necessary steps based on the provided details and dispensed with the presence of the Election Commission of India in the case.
ORDER :
1. Learned Additional Solicitor General has referred to the supplementary affidavit filed on behalf of the CBI and has pointed out that in CAN 5 of 2022 certain incorrect factual averments were inadvertently made which need to be corrected.
2. He has submitted that in paragraph 3 (a) of the application it was inadvertently mentioned at Serial No.3 of the tabular list that a case was registered on receipt of complaint from individual complaints, though they did not figure in the NHRC Report, but later, on inspection it was found that the case was mentioned in the NHRC list, however, the CBI registered this case on receipt of private complaint.
3. He has also submitted that two more cases were registered on the basis of the complaints though not referred by the NHRC, as per dictum of this Hon'ble High Court at paras 156 and 157 of the order dated 19.08.2021. The same were inadvertently missed out in the tabular list under paragraph 3 (a) of the application.
4. The facts so stated in the supplementary affidavit are taken on record.
5. The fourth status report on behalf of the CBI, Special Crime Branch, Kolkata is taken on record.
6. Learned Additional Solicitor General has submitted that 28 cases, which were under investigation before the CBI as indicated on the previous date, are still under investigation.
7. Learned counsel appearing for the SIT has also placed on record the status report dated 16.02.2022 and has submitted that in that report one case was shown to be under investigation, but thereafter the SIT has received 31 cases from the CBI. Therefore, as on today 32 cases are under investigation before the SIT.
8. Ms. Tibrewal, the petitioner present in-person in WPA (P) 144 of 2021 has filed the affidavits of 303 persons who, according to her, have either been forcibly ousted from their houses or have not been allowed to go back to their houses or their houses have been destroyed, therefore they cannot go back to their houses or those who have not been permitted to go back their workplaces. She has submitted that out of 303 affidavits, 47 relate to those persons who have not been allowed to return to their workplaces, 92 relates to those persons whose houses have been demolished, so they are not in a position to return to their houses and 164 relates to those who have been forcibly ousted from their houses and have not been able to return due to non-cooperation of the State authorities.
9. She has further submitted that even those persons who are permitted to go back to their houses, are receiving threats from the local goons and facing difficulty in residing on their own houses.
10. She has expressed that if police protection is not extended to those persons, they will face serious difficulties and that a committee of two Members, one from the NHRC and the State Human Rights Commission be formed, so that affidavits can be placed before them and real position can be ascertained by the said Committee.
11. She is directed to supply a complete set of those affidavits to learned Advocate General and DG & IG of Police.
12. The DG and IG of Police is directed to ensure that none of those 303 persons who have filed affidavits are harassed either by the police authorities or by the local goons.
13. In respect of WPA (P) 149 of 2021, on 03.01.2022 this Court had directed learned counsel for the petitioner to provide a copy of the petition along with enclosures to learned Additional Solicitor General and he was also directed to give a list of the ousted persons to learned Advocate General.
14. Both learned ASG and learned AG have submitted that they have not received copy of the petition.
15. Let a copy of the petition be served by learned counsel for the petitioner within one week in terms of the previous order dated 03.01.2022.
16. The petitioner is directed to place on record the complete details of persons in the form of supplementary affidavit who, according to him, have not been permitted to go back to their houses.
17. On receipt of
