Kolkata: Lawyers belonging to the Trinamool Congress' (TMC) legal wing staged a blockade at Calcutta High Court and prevented other lawyers from entering the court of Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay on Wenesday. They alleged that "Justice Gangopadhyay has committed a crime by passing orders in the School Service Commission (SSC) corruption case."
However, another section of lawyers opposed the decision. This resulted in a dispute between the two groups. The development comes a day after the Calcutta High Court stayed a single bench order directing West Bengal Minister Partha Chatterjee to appear before the CBI in connection with the alleged irregularities regarding the recruitment of assistant teachers in schools aided by the State Government. The order issued by Justice Gangopadhyay also granted the Central agency to arrest Chatterjee in the case if required. He stated in the order that Chatterjee cannot be hospitalized to dodge the CBI probe.
During the day TMC, BJP and Left-leaning lawyers clashed when Justice Gangopadhyay entered his courtroom. Legal luminaries like Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya and Sabyasachi Chattopadhyay had to somehow enter the court amid shouting, pushing and shoving. After the incident in front of court No. 17 in the morning, two lawyers drew the attention of the Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court's Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava. The Chief Justice said that everyone here is like brothers and sisters to each other and urged everyone to resolve the issue amicably and quickly among themselves.
Following the order Bar Association, Calcutta High Court passed a resolution to boycott Justice Gangopadhyay."The Hon'ble Chief Justice, being the Master of Roster, if not pleased to change the determination of Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay from Wednesday (13/ 4/ 2022) to uphold the Judicial discipline and supremacy of the judiciary as humbly requested by the members of the Bar, will have no option but to abstain from the judicial work in that Court until appropriate recourse is taken having due regard that independent and fair judiciary in the dispensation of justice is the hallmark of a vibrant democracy," said Biswabrata Basu Mallick, Hony. Secretary of Bar Association, Calcutta High Court.
Meanwhile, West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar wrote a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and expressed his desire to talk to her on Wednesday itself regarding law and order situation in the State. "The situation in the Kolkata High Court as well as the incidents of crimes against women point to the deteriorating law and order situation in the state. You will agree that in a society governed by the Constitution and the rule of law, if the law is blocked, it will be the last nail in the coffin of democracy. I want to talk to you about it today," the Governor stated in the letter.
