After examining a report on Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay's interview with a news channel on the West Bengal school job scam, the Supreme Court has directed the chief justice of the Calcutta HC to reassign the case to another judge. "We direct the Hon'ble Acting Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to re-assign the pending proceedings to some other judge of the Calcutta High Court," the apex court said today, April 28.
Hearing a plea filed by TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee, an accused in the case, a bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha took note of the report of the Registrar General of the Calcutta High Court, while pronouncing the reassignment order, as per a report by PTI.
A "pattern going on"?
"The judge to whom the proceedings are assigned would be at liberty to take up all applications moved in this regard," the bench said in its order. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta stated that there was a "pattern going on" and the judges are targeted for their judgements if they do not go as per the wishes of a particular person.
"Judges should not be browbeaten," he said, referring to the public speech made by Abhishek Banerjee which allegedly threatened judges. "I have something to say and this is a disturbing thing. There is a pattern going on and once a verdict goes against a ruling dispensation, the judges are targeted," Mehta added.
Earlier, the bench had said that judges had no business granting interviews on pending matters. On April 17, the top court had stayed the Calcutta High Court's April 13 order directing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to interrogate Banerjee and Kuntal Ghosh, another accused in the case, and file a report in HC based on that.
"Pursuant to the order of this court dated April 24, the Calcutta High Court registry has placed the affidavit dated April 27 filed by the Calcutta HC Registrar General. Having considered the note prepared by Justice A Gangopadhyay in respect, and also perused the transcript, of the interview. The transcript has been authenticated on April 26, 2023, by the interpreting officer on the original site of the high court," the bench said on Friday.
Earlier this year, the single judge bench of the Calcutta High Court of Justice Gangopadhyay had also directed the West Bengal police not to lodge any FIR against CBI and ED officers probing the alleged scam, as per a report by PTI.
