'Calcutta HC's observations on post-poll violence alarming': Smriti Irani fumes at Mamata

Posting Calcutta High Court's observations, BJP leader and women and child development minister Smriti Irani lashed out at West Bengal Government over post-poll violence allegations. ‘There had been post poll violence & the state was found on a wrong foot,’ Irani quoted Calcutta HC. The Calcutta High Court bench, on Friday, July 2, conducted the hearing of post-election violence cases and ordered the Mamata Banerjee-led state government to provide medical treatment and ration to the victims even if they don't have ration cards.

The High Court had marked various other observations and the BJP leader particularly wrote about the cruelty that was faced by minor girls. 

The HC also directed the state to register all the complaints of post-poll violence and issue a show-cause notice for contempt of court proceedings against Deputy Commissioner of Police of South Kolkata Rashid Munir Khan for failing to prevent obstruction to the team of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) which was visiting Jadavpur to examine allegations of post-poll violence and was attacked. 

NHRC attacked by mob

Earlier on June 30, the NHRC team, while investigating post-poll violence incidents in West Bengal on the orders of the Calcutta High Court, were reportedly attacked by a mob. The vice-chairman of NHRC, Atif Rasheed, said that a mob attacked them while they were investigating in Jadavpur. The team, which was recording videos of some houses allegedly damaged in the post-poll violence, was reportedly surrounded by around 20-25 people.

Post-poll violence in West Bengal

Incidents of violence were reported from several parts of West Bengal after May 2 when Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) won the Assembly elections in the State. BJP leadership and workers have time and again alleged incidents of brutality on their party workers and supporters, rape of minor girls and women; and many BJP and other party offices were attacked by stone-pelting mobs. Houses and vehicles of some BJP candidates were allegedly attacked, BJP offices at different parts of the State were ransacked and set ablaze.

Calcutta HC orders TMC govt to reinstate Suvendu Adhikari's 'Z' Category Security

The West Bengal Government is currently facing two major cases including the post-poll violence and the Nandigram scam. The Calcutta High Court on Friday ordered the West Bengal Government to provide security to the Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari that was earlier withdrawn by the state. The HC observed that Adhikari, who is a Z-category protectee by the Home Ministry is adequately covered by the central security force.