Kolkata, April 8 Calcutta High Court, on Tuesday, granted permission to the West Bengal Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari to visit Mothabari in Malda district, which was hit by communal tensions.
Earlier this month, Adhikari approached Calcutta High Court’s single-judge bench of Justice Tirthankar Ghosh seeking permission, apprehending that Malda district police might deny him the same on the grounds that the visit might provoke further tension in the area.
On Tuesday, Justice Ghosh granted permission for the visit with a set of conditions. As per the court order, the Leader of the Opposition will be able to visit Mothabari accompanied by his security personnel on April 11 between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
However, his movements will be restricted within the areas under the jurisdiction of Mothabari Police Station.
The court has also directed that information of the number of vehicles in the convoy of the Leader of the Opposition will have to be intimated to the district police administration in advance.
The court also barred any kind of rallies or processions on that day over the visit of the Leader of the Opposition.
Justice Ghosh also directed the Malda district police superintendent to closely follow the entire situation on the day of Adhikari’s visit to Mothabari and also said that in case of any trouble, forces should be deployed immediately to keep the situation under control.
Earlier, Adhikari wrote to Governor C.V. Ananda Bose, requesting him to direct the state government to deploy Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) at Mothabari.
Police said 61 persons have been arrested in connection with the communal tension at Mothabari, and a total of 61 cases have been filed. Although the state police had claimed that the situation at Mothabari is currently under control, the Leader of the Opposition has refuted the police’s claims.
He alleged that had the situation been under control, the state police would not have prevented the opposition leaders and the media persons from entering the troubled spot.
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