On 25th September (Friday), the division bench of the Calcutta High Court, headed by Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge and including Justice Om Narayan Rai, overturned a single-judge ruling that protected Milan Pradhan, the Indian National Congress candidate in the upcoming Nandigram bypoll, from coercive action in a criminal case from 2007.
He was instructed to follow the law and submit an application for regular bail. The Bench noted that the petitioner could request bail in this matter and expressed surprise at the protection given to Pradhan by Judge Saugata Bhattacharyya. It added that he would have to go to the bail court in accordance with the law if he wanted any relief, questioning which statute was invoked to make the earlier verdict.
The court highlighted that everyone is subject to the same laws and an individual running for office cannot be treated differently. Pradhan’s judicial remand until 7th October, which was awarded by the Contai Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) Court, will continue to be in effect as the judgement has been quashed by the High Court. The Single Bench decision had ordered authorities not to act against Pradhan in relation to the case until 12th October.
On 18th September, Pradhan was arrested by the Purba Medinipur police in connection with a murder case dating back to the 2007 Nandigram land-acquisition protests, a movement spearheaded by Mamata Banerjee and her political supporters against the then Left Front government’s land acquisition plans. The case was submitted at Khejuri Police Station in Purba Medinipur district.
The arrest came just hours after former Mamata announced that her party would support Pradhan in the 6th October bypoll after her candidate, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, withdrew from the fight following a meeting with Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. According to police, the charges include allegations of murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, evidence loss, house trespassing, and rioting with firearms and lethal weapons.
“The arrested person had been absconding and evading the due process of law for nineteen years since 2007 and stands chargesheeted in the concerned cases as an absconder,” they conveyed.
OpIndia already reported on four pending arrest warrants issued against Pradhan in different criminal cases. Three of these arrest warrants were issued in 2021 while one was issued in 2023. All four pending arrest warrants relate to criminal cases registered against Pradhan in 2007, three of which include murder charges.
