IMPORTANT POINT
The court's decision emphasized the need for an impartial inquiry, victim and witness protection, and infrastructure improvements in response to the reported incidents in Sandeshkhali.

JUDGMENT :

T.S.SIVAGNANAM, HIRANMAY BHATTACHARYYA, JJ.

1. WPA 4011 of 2024 was taken up as a suo motu writ petition by Hon’ble Single Bench of this court and by order dated 12.02.2024 the court recorded its gross disappointments after going through several newspapers and electronic media wherein it had been reported that number of ladies in Sandeshkhali, North 24 Parganas have been sexually assaulted at gun point. The court also observed that it has been alleged in the newspapers that the tribal lands were taken away forcibly in violation of all legal formalities and laws. The learned Public Prosecutor was present in court and submitted that the learned Advocate General of the State is an appropriate person who will address the court and satisfy the queries that may be raised. With these observations, the court was constrained to take suo motu cognizance over the alleged incidents and also appointed learned amicus curiae to assist the court. The matter was placed before the Chief Justice and by administrative order dated 28.02.2024, the order passed by the learned Single Bench dated 12.02.2024 was treated as a report in terms of the Rule 59 of the Rules Relating to Applications under Article 226 of the Constitution and the matter was directed to be placed before the Division Bench dealing with Public Interest Litigation on 28.02.2024 and a supplementary list to be published in this regard. This is how the matter was listed before this court. Subsequently three other writ petitions as mentioned above were tagged along with the suo motu writ petitions.

2. In WPA (P) 93 of 2024 filed by a Learned Member of the Bar appearing in person seeks for issuance of a writ of mandamus to direct the Deputy Commissioner of Police and Officer-in-Charge of the concerned police stations for immediate ceasing of atrocities and urgent filing of FIRs against the perpetrators to arrest such perpetrators; to direct the returning of the land to the people from whom they were taken away and payment of the appropriate compensation; to constitute police teams to be posted in the area and to be monitored by this court; to constitute a Special Task Force and allow them to visit Sandeshkhali to assess the situation at ground level and also to allow the writ petitioner to visit Sandeshkhali.

3. In WPA (P) 78 of 2024 which has also been filed by a practising advocate of this court wherein a prayer has been made for deployment of CRPF forces for securing the life and liberty of the victim women in Sandeshkhali; to render adequate protection to their lives and the dignity of the victims of sexual exploitation and sexual violence; to direct the National Commission for Women to enquire into the acts of sexual exploitation of women in Sandeshkhali by certain named persons; to constitute an independent Special Investigating Team consisting of any Central Investigating Agency to investigate into the complaints by the victims of Sandeshkhali and to direct the respondent including the state police not to intimidate and threaten the victims of Sandeshkhali and for immediate deployment of central forces.

4. WPA (P) 104 of 2024 has been filed by an advocate practising before the Hon’ble Supreme Court with a prayer to issue a writ of mandamus to transfer the investigation of the alleged sexual assault of women of the village Sandeshkhali from the West Bengal Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or to a Special Investigation Team (SIT) situated outside the State of West Bengal preferably at Delhi; to form a Committee of three retired Judges of the High Court in line with the Committee formed in Manipur atrocities case (Dinganglung Gangmei Versus Mutum Churamani Meetei and Others, 2023 INSC 698) in order to enquire into the nature of violence against women that occurred in Sandeshkhali; to direct the respondents to compensate the victims of sexual assault; to deploy central paramilitary forces for protection of the concerned witness/victims; to direct conduct of t