Day after judge accuses fellow judge, SC stays all proceedings before Calcutta HC over matter

Day after judge accuses fellow judge, SC stays all proceedings before Calcutta HC over matter

A day after developments in the Calcutta High Court, where a judge accused a fellow judge of “acting clearly for some political party in this State”, triggered a row, the Supreme Court Saturday issued a notice to the West Bengal government and the Calcutta HC and also stayed directions for a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the admission of MBBS candidates in the state.

CJI D Y Chandrachud had set up a five-judge bench comprising himself and the four most senior judges of the court – Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, Surya Kant and Aniruddha Bose – after taking suo motu cognisance of the developments on Friday.

The top court further stayed all related proceedings before the Calcutta High Court in the matter. The Supreme Court will take up the matter on Monday. “We have taken charge now,” the CJI said.

On Thursday, a single-judge bench of Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay of the Calcutta High Court had directed that a CBI investigation ordered into alleged irregularities in MBBS admissions in the state will continue, despite an order of a division bench to the contrary.

In the written order, he levelled accusations against a fellow judge, Justice Soumen Sen.

Justice Gangopadhyay had Wednesday ordered a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in admission of MBBS candidates in state-run medical colleges and hospitals. However, the state government moved the division bench of Justices Sen and Uday Kumar, which ordered an interim stay on the single-bench order. The state government had made a verbal appeal before the division bench, which admitted the petition.

In his written order, Justice Gangopadhyay wrote, “Now I have to do something which is though unusual, but unless I do this, I think I will fail in my duty to hold the sanctity of judiciary in general and this court in particular. It is fully in respect of His Lordship, the Hon’ble Justice Soumen Sen”.

“I was told some days back by Justice Amrita Sinha that Justice Sen called her in his chamber on the last day before vacation, and like a political leader, he dictated Justice Sinha three things: i) Mr. Avishek Banerjee has a political future, he should not be disturbed; ii) Live-streaming shall be stopped in Justice Sinha’s court; iii) The two writ petitions before Justice Sinha, where the name of Mr. Avishek Banerjee is involved, are to be dismissed,” the order continued.

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