Mafia dons, felony gangs carried out post-poll violence in Bengal: Panel

New Delhi, Jun 29 (IANS): Hardened criminals, mafia dons and felony gangs led and carried out the lethal assaults in West Bengal after the declaration of Meeting election outcomes on Might 2, as per the report of a fact-finding committee comprising the civil society group ‘Name for Justice, which was submitted to Union Minister of State for House, G. Kishan Reddy, on Tuesday.

The report mentioned that these parts had been unhindered, which reveals that there was clear political patronage even earlier than the elections and the identical was used to silence the political rivals.

Recognising the spectrum of the incidents of post-poll violence in West Bengal, Name for Justice had constituted a fact-finding committee led by Justice Permod Kohli, former Chief Justice of Sikkim Excessive Court docket, and comprising Anand Bose, IAS (retired), former Chief Secretary, Kerala; Nirmal Kaur, IPS (retired), former DGP, Jharkhand; Nisar Ahmed, ex-President, ICSI; and M. Madan Gopal, IAS (retired), former Further Chief Secretary, Karnataka.

The magnitude and attain of the post-poll violence touched many villages and cities all throughout the state concurrently, starting from the evening of Might 2. This can be a clear indication that a lot of the incidents weren’t sporadic however premeditated, organised and conspiratorial, the committee discovered.

In a lot of the instances, the victims had been afraid to lodge a grievance with the police both as a result of worry of reprisal or because of the lack of religion within the police, it mentioned.

The victims who gathered braveness to go to the police had been both turned away to settle the matter with the culprits or confronted flat refusal to register the case. Many individuals left their properties and villages for safer locations, to shelter camps inside and out of doors the state, the report mentioned.

Forcibly taking away Aadhaar playing cards, ration playing cards, demanding written endeavor on to not assist a specific political occasion, demanding ransom and safety cash (known as ‘tolabazi’) to return to workplaces or for reclaiming lands or for rebuilding the homes, elimination from contractual employment and all such incidents had been mainly meant to instill an enduring political influence and worry psychosis at massive, the report mentioned.

Though the figures of the precise variety of casualties, grievous accidents, extent of harm to property are but to be recognized totally, the lumpenisation of public life nurtured and guarded by way of highly effective lobbies at each stage may be very clear, it mentioned.

“The depth and unfold of post-poll violence may have been halted or managed if the administration and the police had acted in time. An evaluation of the bottom scenario reveals that no satisfactory or cheap measures had been taken, knowingly or unknowingly,” the report mentioned.

The actual fact-finding workforce has beneficial that the federal government ought to provoke disciplinary proceedings towards the delinquent officers, together with the All-India Service Officers, who did not discharge their duties in defending the lives of individuals and destruction of properties.

The companies of retired judges of excessive courts or the Supreme Court docket ought to be sought to go these inquiry proceedings, it mentioned.

All of the experiences ready by the MHA, NCSC, NCW, NHRC, NCPCR together with the report of the fact-finding committee should be positioned earlier than the Supreme Court docket, it mentioned.

Within the mild of the overwhelming, ample, substantial and convincing proof, the Supreme Court docket might think about constituting a Particular Investigation Staff (SIT) instantly, it added.

The progress of the work of the SIT ought to be monitored by Supreme Court docket to make sure neutral {and professional} method, both by way of a sitting choose or a retired choose of the highest courtroom for honest investigation and early justice, the committee has beneficial.

In its place, the federal government of India might represent a judicial fee headed by a sitting or a retired Chief Justice or a choose of the Supreme Court docket or excessive courtroom.