‘Lack of Guv’s nod stalls implementation of anti-lynching Bill in Bengal’
Kolkata: Around five years ago, the West Bengal (Prevention of Lynching) Bill in August 2019 was passed in the state Assembly but the Bengal government could not implement it as Governor C V Ananda Bose has not yet given his assent.
The ruling Trinamool Congress wanted to enforce a new law to prevent mob lynching and punish those involved in the crime.
Despite its passage, the Bill was not signed by then Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and was not sent back to the Assembly for reconsideration.
No development in this regard took place after Bose took charge as the Governor. The Bill proposes a maximum punishment of life imprisonment and fines ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh for offences.
Incidentally, four deaths took place in the state recently due to mob lynching. Although Bengal does not figure among the places where major cases of lynching were reported during the last few years. Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee on Tuesday however criticized the Raj Bhavan for not signing a bill passed by the House in 2019. The Assembly passed the Bill with support from both the Left and Congress legislators. The BJP, with only three MLAs at that time, neither supported nor opposed the Bill.
“The bill should have been signed by the Governor. If it had been, we might not have seen the instances of mob lynching in Bengal, since that would have acted as a deterrent,” Bengal Speaker Banerjee told reporters.
He added: “The Governor can sign, cannot sign it, or send it back to the Assembly. But none of these happened. Even the Sarkaria Commission said that holding onto a bill indefinitely undermines its purpose.”
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while tabling the bill on the floor of the Assembly five years ago, had pointed out that lynching was a social evil and all should have come together to fight against it. She had also mentioned that the Supreme Court also gave direction to take action against lynching and therefore the state required to raise awareness against such incidents.
