Two cops accused in Bengal post-poll violence approach Calcutta HC for bail

Kolkata, July 21 Two policemen, who were named as accused in Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) latest supplementary charge sheet in murder case of BJP worker, Abhijit Sarkar in the post-poll violence in the state after the 2021 West Bengal Assembly election, on Monday approached a single-judge bench of Calcutta High Court with bail petitions.

The two policemen who approached the single-judge bench of Justice Suvra Ghosh on Monday are the then lady sub-inspector of Narkeldanga Police Station, Ratna Sarkar, and a home guard, Dipankar Debnath. They also pleaded for a fast-track hearing in the matter.

Justice Ghosh admitted the petition, and the matter will come up for hearing on Tuesday.

Both Ratna Sarkar and Dipankar Debnath were remanded to judicial custody till July 31 by the special CBI court on July 18. On that day, the special court also remanded retired assistant commissioner of Kolkata police and the then officer in charge of Narkeldanga Police Station, Subhojit Sen, to judicial custody till July 31.

However, Sen is yet to approach the Calcutta High Court with his bail petition.

All of them were named as accused in the supplementary charge sheet filed by the CBI in the case at the same special court in Kolkata earlier this month. While remanding them to judicial custody till July 31, the judge of the special court on July 18 observed that if a “protector” becomes the “killer”, its negative impact on society is immense.

Abhijit Sarkar, a BJP worker and a resident of the Kankurgachi area in North Kolkata, was killed in the post-poll violence on May 2, 2021, soon after the results of the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections were declared, where Trinamool Congress bagged a landslide victory.

On July 2 this year, CBI issued a statement and informed that a fresh supplementary charge sheet in the matter naming 18 additional accused persons was submitted to the special court.

With the 18 additional accused persons being named in the fresh chargesheet, the total number of accused persons in the case rose to 38.

Initially, the investigation into the matter was started by the homicide squad under the detective department of Kolkata Police, which in its chargesheet, named a total of 15 accused persons.

Subsequently, following an order of the Calcutta High Court, the CBI took over the investigation by registering a case in August 2021 and in September 2021 filed a supplementary chargesheet against 20 accused persons, including the 15 previously charge-sheeted by the city police.

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