Kolkata, May 17 (IANS) Two-time BJP Lok Sabha member Jyotirmay Singh Mahato on Saturday said that he has written a letter to the Calcutta High Court Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam seeking a suo motu intervention by the court on the “ruthless” cane-charge on Thursday night to disperse the “gherao” demonstration organised by the “untainted” or “genuine” secondary and higher secondary teachers in state-run schools in West Bengal who have lost their jobs following a Supreme Court order.

In the letter, Mahato had claimed that not just the police but also goons backed by the ruling Trinamool Congress, led by some ruling party leaders, launched that brutal attack on the protesting teachers on Thursday.

“The actions of the police appear to have violated several provisions of Indian law, particularly under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and have raised serious concerns about the protection of fundamental rights and the rule of law, I respectfully request your esteemed court to take suo motu cognisance of this matter to ensure justice and accountability,” read the letter.

Mahato, in his letter, also claimed that over 40 protesting teachers sustained critical injuries, including head wounds, broken limbs, eye injuries, and a reported heart attack, because of the brutal cane-charge by the cops.

“The actions of the police appear to have violated several provisions of Indian law, particularly under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and have raised serious concerns about the protection of fundamental rights and the rule of law, I respectfully request your esteemed court to take suo motu cognizance of this matter to ensure justice and accountability,” the letter read.

In his letter, Mahato claims that the action of the police on Thursday night violated at least four sections under BNS, and hence these actions contravened established police protocols such as the Model Code of Conduct for Indian Police, 1965.

On April 3 this year, the Supreme Court’s division bench of erstwhile Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar had upheld a previous order by the Calcutta High Court’s division bench of Justice Debangshu Basak and Justice Shabbar Rashidi cancelling 25,753 school jobs in West Bengal.

The apex court also accepted the observation of the Calcutta High Court that the entire panel of 25,753 candidates had to be cancelled because of the failure of the state government and the commission to segregate the “untainted| candidates from the “tainted” ones.

The state government and West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) had already filed review petitions at the apex court on this issue.

–IANS

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