High Court allows Suvendu and others to meet Governor with ‘permission’

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court, on Friday, allowed Leader of Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari and the alleged victims of post-poll violence, to visit Raj Bhavan if permission is granted by the secretariat of the Governor.

Meanwhile, Governor C V Ananda Bose wrote to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, questioning the grounds on which police had prevented the alleged victims from entering Raj Bhavan.

Addressing the press, Bose on Friday said that he had sent a letter in a sealed envelope to the Chief Minister.

He alleged that the state administration failed to perform its Constitutional duties. It was learnt that Bose sought to know from Banerjee on what ground the police had stopped alleged victims of post-poll violence from entering the Raj Bhavan despite his office issuing the necessary permission for it.

The Governor also met people affected by violence in the state after the Lok Sabha polls at Maheshwari Bhawan in Burrabazar.

Meanwhile, the Calcutta High Court on Friday allowed Adhikari and the alleged victims of post-poll violence to meet the Governor on a separate date if permission is granted by Raj Bhavan and the prescribed protocol is followed.

During the hearing of the matter, Justice Amrita Sinha asked the state’s Advocate General (AG) whether the Governor was under “house arrest”. The judge also asked that if such is not the case then why were the petitioners prevented from meeting the Governor?

On Thursday Suvendu Adhikari and the alleged victims of post-poll violence were stopped from entering the Raj Bhavan to meet Bose, citing Section 144 of the CrPC, which is in force outside the Governor House.