The Calcutta High Court on Monday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of Abu Sufian, a Trinamool Congress leader in Nandigram, for his alleged involvement in post-poll violence.
Sufian, who was also the election agent of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who had lost to Suvendu Adhikari from Nandigram in the Assembly elections held earlier this year, is accused of the murder of BJP supporter Debabrata Maity.
A division bench of Justice Debangshu Basak dismissed the bail application. On the one hand, Sufian’s application for anticipatory bail has been rejected. At the same time, the interim protection he received from the court was withdrawn on the same day. Earlier, the Calcutta High Court had granted interim protection to the TMC leader.
Undoubtedly, the decision of the court on this day is significant. Earlier, the CBI interrogated Sufian in a post-poll violence case. His statement was also recorded. Several serious allegations were lodged against him with the CBI.
Sufian then approached the Calcutta High Court seeking anticipatory bail before the CBI could arrest him. At that time, a division bench of Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharya and Justice Rabindranath Samanta gave him interim protection. At the same time, the CBI said there was no arrest situation now.
Meanwhile, during the hearing of the case again on Monday, the CBI informed that there would be a problem in keeping Sheikh Sufian in custody in the situation of the case. Justice Debangshu Basak’s division bench then withdrew the defence. At the same time, Sufian went to court saying that the bail period was coming to an end. The court dismissed the plea.
TMC was accused of killing BJP supporter Debabrata Maiti, a resident of Chillogram in Nandigram, after the election results were announced. Sheikh Sufian’s name was involved in that incident. The family of the slain Debabrata also complained to the Human Rights Commission about the Trinamool leader.
However, the accused Trinamool leader said, “The CBI sent me a notice. I am not involved in that incident. Yet when I am called, I must go. The whole thing is political revenge. That is why I have been summoned.”
BJP leader Praloy Pal claimed, that on the day after the election, he went to Debabrata Maiti’s house in Chillogram and was beaten by grassroots miscreants. Debabrata was taken to Calcutta with serious injuries and died two days later.
“No case could be filed at Nandigram police station at that moment because the TMC people surrounded. The police were also inactive. Later, when the Human Rights Commission came to Nandigram, a complaint was lodged against them. There are names of several first-line grassroots leaders of Nandigram including Sheikh Sufian in that incident.”