Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has strongly cautioned the West Bengal government over the repeated registration of FIRs against TMC MP and national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya warned that the court may pass a blanket order preventing the state from registering any further FIRs against Banerjee without prior permission from the court.
The observation came during the hearing of petitions seeking the quashing of three FIRs registered against the TMC leader.
The three FIRs were lodged on July 4, July 11 and July 23, and are primarily related to allegations concerning ‘Sebaashray’, a community healthcare initiative launched by Banerjee.
The court extended protection to Banerjee from coercive action in all three cases.
While the court said the allegations could be investigated, it observed that there was no need for custodial interrogation of Banerjee.
Justice Bhattacharyya also questioned the direct connection between the allegations and the TMC leader.
The state alleged that expired medicines were used at the facility and that ‘Sebaashray’ was being operated in violation of the Clinical Establishments Act. The state also alleged that sex determination tests were conducted at the facility.
However, the court said these appeared to be general allegations and that it had not been able to identify a direct link between the allegations and Abhishek Banerjee.
The court observed that there could be a case of medical negligence and said the authorities should investigate the matter and file a chargesheet if necessary.
The judge also expressed concern over what he described as repeated complaints being filed against the same individual.
The court is currently considering petitions seeking the cancellation of the three FIRs and protection from coercive action against Banerjee.
