The Evening Wrap: Bengal’s power to withhold consent to CBI is not absolute, Centre tells SC

The Centre told the Supreme Court that Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal does not have any “absolute” power to keep the CBI from investigating crimes inside the State. The Centre said that “no power, not even the Union government”, has the authority to rattle the autonomy of the premier agency to conduct investigations, especially in the cases of post-poll violence transferred to it by the Calcutta High Court, in which the State Police is under a cloud. The Union Government, through the Department of Personnel and Training, was responding to a suit filed by the West Bengal Government against the Union of India under Article 131 of the Constitution. The State has challenged the CBI’s jurisdiction to register FIRs and conduct investigations in the State in myriad cases. West Bengal said it had withdrawn “general consent” to the CBI way back in 2018. The State said the CBI’s actions were a direct attack on the federal structure of governance and aimed to harass the ruling Trinamool Congress leaders in the State. The case came up for hearing before a Bench of Justices L. Nageswara Rao and B.R. Gavai on Friday. The Bench said the arguments in the case need to be heard in detail, and posted it for hearing on November 16. “The suit is filed by proceeding on the basis that the power to withhold consent is absolute. This certainly cannot be so...” the Centre said. In its affidavit, the Centre, while maintaining that West Bengal’s power to withhold consent to the CBI was far from absolute, accused the latter of “suppressing” information in the apex court that the post-poll violence cases were transferred to the agency by the Calcutta HC. It said withdrawal of general consent would not stand in the way of constitutional courts entrusting the CBI with the cases “where it is found that the State Police would not effectively conduct a fair and impartial investigation”. Besides, the CBI was empowered to probe cases concerning any of the Central subjects enumerated in the Union List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. The affidavit said the alleged crimes under investigation were offences under parliamentary laws. “All these would be traceable to laws made by Parliament… the State government would not have the competence to use its police force to investigate these offences,” the Centre argued. The Union’s affidavit referred to 12 cases highlighted by the State. It said these cases also relate to offences of corruption against Central Government employees, etc. “There are numerous investigations which are being carried out against Central Government employees or have either pan-India impact or impact on more than one State for the purpose of conducting investigation into such offences. It is always desirable and in the larger interest of justice that the Central agency conducts the investigation in such cases,” the Centre said. It questioned why West Bengal had made the “Union of India” the sole party in the suit before the Supreme Court. “The Union of India has not registered any case in the State of West Bengal, nor has it been investigating any case,” the 61-page affidavit said. The Centre said West Bengal has “strangely not made CBI a party to the suit”. Suits under Article 131 are filed exclusively in the Supreme Court with regard to disputes between States, or between the Centre and State. The Centre said that since the Union of India has nothing to do with the affair and since the CBI was an autonomous body not controlled by the Union Government, the suit was misplaced and should be dismissed. The apex court had issued notice in the suit in early September. The State government, in its plea, has sought a stay of investigation in the FIRs lodged by the CBI. Bhima Koregaon Commission summons Param Bir Singh and Rashmi Shukla The Bhima Koregaon Commission on Friday issued summons to IPS officers Param Bir Singh and Rashmi Shukla to appear as witnesses in the caste-based violence that occurred on January 1, 2018 in Pune. The Commission is a judicial inquiry which was appointed in February 2018 after violence broke out when Dalits were attacked while observing the 200th anniversary of the battle against the Peshwas that the British won with the help of Dalit solidiers. The Commission, headed by JN Patel, retired chief of Kolkata High Court and Sumit Mullick, former Maharashtra Chief Secretary, on Friday issued summons to Singh, who was the Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) in 2018 and Shukla, who was the Commissioner of Pune police. They are expected to respond to the summons by November 8, 2021. So far, several extensions have been given to the Commission and over 35 witnesses have deposed before it. “However, the evidence is still evolving and several State and Police officials are expected to depose as witnesses soon,” Commission’s lawyer Aashish Satpute told The Hindu. The Commission has so far received nearly 500 affidavits — from victims, Dalit outfits, NGOs, right-wing groups, government and police officials — across Pune, Mumbai and Thane. 79 cases booked under unlawful conversion law in U.P Of the 79 cases registered against unlawful conversion under the 2020 law in Uttar Pradesh till July this year, chargesheets have been filed in 50 cases, while final report was filed in seven cases, according to a document submitted by the State government in the Allahabad High Court. Of the 79 FIRs, investigation was pending in 22 cases, the State government said in a counter affidavit in response to a bunch of PILs challenging the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act 2021 (earlier ordinance 2020). Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel promulgated the ordinance on unlawful conversion days after it was passed by the Yogi Adityanath-led State cabinet last November. Out of the 79 FIRs lodged till July 7, most were registered in Bareilly zone 21, followed by Meerut Zone 15, Gorakhpur 12, Agra seven and Prayagraj five. The cases in which final report was submitted include the Moradabad case last December when the husband of a Hindu woman Pinki who was pregnant was arrested under the law. The woman, who was temporarily kept in a government shelter, had reportedly suffered a miscarriage leading to outrage over the case. Her husband Rashid and his brother were arrested when they had reached the marriage registration office in Kanth on the complaint of Pinki’s mother, who alleged Rashid had induced her into marriage and converted her under the garb of providing her a job. Later, in her statement before a magistrate, Pinki had said they married through consent as both were adults. The final report was also placed in the Shahjahanpur case where five persons, including two Christians originally from Tamil Nadu and two Dalits, were booked under the ordinance on the complaint of Ram Lakhan Verma, a city convenor of the Bajrang Dal. Verma had alleged that they were trying to lure him and others into converting into Christianity with the promise of jobs and free education for children. The accused were also thrashed by members of the right-wing outfit. However, the accused denied the charges and said they were only participating in a musical prayer service in a marriage lawn on January 3, 2021 to mark the first Sunday of the New Year. While providing data under the new law, the State government’s affidavit said the “the assertion that no official data is available to substantiate the claim that the social fabric is threatened by [forcible conversions] is fallacious, misconceived, not admitted and is denied”. The new law makes religious conversion a cognisable and non-bailable offence, inviting penalties of up to 10 years in prison if found to be effected for marriage or through misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or other allegedly fraudulent means. One dead in south Mumbai tower blaze One person died after falling from the 19th floor and 16 others were rescued after a fire broke out in the 60-storey Avighna Park in south Mumbai’s Curry Road area around midday on Friday. The fire was doused by evening and Municipal Commissioner of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has ordered an inquiry based on the complaints filed by other residents of the high rise. Arun Tiwari, 30, was working as a security guard in the building and was present at the 19th floor when furniture work was going on in one of the flats. “He panicked and ran to the window from where he was trying to come out by hanging outside. But he fell. He was rushed to the KEM hospital but he was declared dead on arrival,” said a fire brigade official. Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar said the staff of the tower should have rushed to evacuate and help immediately after the fire broke out while fire brigade was on its way. “Had they acted, the man could have been saved,” she said. Pednekar added that residents have complained against the developer of Avighna Park for non-cooperation in land conveyance and other matters. “It has resulted in delay in several safety-related matters in the tower and today’s incident is a result of that,” she said. Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal said the civic officials have taken a note of complaints of residents. “An administrative probe will be conducted and action will be taken based on that,” he said. The fire broke out at around 11.45 a.m. A total of 40 vehicles, including 14 fire engines, nine jumbo tankers, one control room vehicle, and skylift were on the spot. The fire was controlled by around 3.30 p.m. and it was completely doused by around 4.58 p.m. Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 3,41,47,740 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 4,53,160. In Brief The month-long winter session of Parliament is likely to commence from the fourth week of November following all COVID-19 protocols, Parliamentary sources said on Friday. The session, which is likely to have around 20 sittings, would conclude ahead of Christmas, they said. In the wake of the pandemic, the Winter session of Parliament was not held last year and all the subsequent sessions — Budget and Monsoon — were curtailed due to Covid. Though an official decision has not been taken yet, the sources said the session could commence from November 29 and would end around December 23. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 22 OCTOBER 2021 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Bengal’s power to withhold consent to CBI is not absolute: Centre to Supreme Court The Centre told the Supreme Court that Mamata Banerjee’s government in [West Bengal does not have any “absolute” power to keep the CBI from investigating]( crimes inside the State. The Centre said that “no power, not even the Union government”, has the authority to rattle the autonomy of the premier agency to conduct investigations, especially in the cases of post-poll violence transferred to it by the Calcutta High Court, in which the State Police is under a cloud. The Union Government, through the Department of Personnel and Training, was responding to a suit filed by the West Bengal Government against the Union of India under Article 131 of the Constitution. The State has challenged the CBI’s jurisdiction to register FIRs and conduct investigations in the State in myriad cases. West Bengal said it had withdrawn “general consent” to the CBI way back in 2018. The State said the CBI’s actions were a direct attack on the federal structure of governance and aimed to harass the ruling Trinamool Congress leaders in the State. The case came up for hearing before a Bench of Justices L. Nageswara Rao and B.R. Gavai on Friday. The Bench said the arguments in the case need to be heard in detail, and posted it for hearing on November 16. “The suit is filed by proceeding on the basis that the power to withhold consent is absolute. This certainly cannot be so...” the Centre said. In its affidavit, the Centre, while maintaining that West Bengal’s power to withhold consent to the CBI was far from absolute, accused the latter of “suppressing” information in the apex court that the post-poll violence cases were transferred to the agency by the Calcutta HC. It said withdrawal of general consent would not stand in the way of constitutional courts entrusting the CBI with the cases “where it is found that the State Police would not effectively conduct a fair and impartial investigation”. Besides, the CBI was empowered to probe cases concerning any of the Central subjects enumerated in the Union List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. The affidavit said the alleged crimes under investigation were offences under parliamentary laws. “All these would be traceable to laws made by Parliament… the State government would not have the competence to use its police force to investigate these offences,” the Centre argued. The Union’s affidavit referred to 12 cases highlighted by the State. It said these cases also relate to offences of corruption against Central Government employees, etc. “There are numerous investigations which are being carried out against Central Government employees or have either pan-India impact or impact on more than one State for the purpose of conducting investigation into such offences. It is always desirable and in the larger interest of justice that the Central agency conducts the investigation in such cases,” the Centre said. It questioned why West Bengal had made the “Union of India” the sole party in the suit before the Supreme Court. “The Union of India has not registered any case in the State of West Bengal, nor has it been investigating any case,” the 61-page affidavit said. The Centre said West Bengal has “strangely not made CBI a party to the suit”. Suits under Article 131 are filed exclusively in the Supreme Court with regard to disputes between States, or between the Centre and State. The Centre said that since the Union of India has nothing to do with the affair and since the CBI was an autonomous body not controlled by the Union Government, the suit was misplaced and should be dismissed. The apex court had issued notice in the suit in early September. The State government, in its plea, has sought a stay of investigation in the FIRs lodged by the CBI. [underlineimg] Bhima Koregaon Commission summons Param Bir Singh and Rashmi Shukla The Bhima Koregaon Commission on Friday [issued summons to IPS officers Param Bir Singh and Rashmi Shukla]( to appear as witnesses in the caste-based violence that occurred on January 1, 2018 in Pune. The Commission is a judicial inquiry which was appointed in February 2018 after violence broke out when Dalits were attacked while observing the 200th anniversary of the battle against the Peshwas that the British won with the help of Dalit solidiers. [File photo of IPS officers Param Bir Singh and Rashmi Shukla.]  The Commission, headed by JN Patel, retired chief of Kolkata High Court and Sumit Mullick, former Maharashtra Chief Secretary, on Friday issued summons to Singh, who was the Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) in 2018 and Shukla, who was the Commissioner of Pune police. They are expected to respond to the summons by November 8, 2021. So far, several extensions have been given to the Commission and over 35 witnesses have deposed before it. “However, the evidence is still evolving and several State and Police officials are expected to depose as witnesses soon,” Commission’s lawyer Aashish Satpute told The Hindu. The Commission has so far received nearly 500 affidavits — from victims, Dalit outfits, NGOs, right-wing groups, government and police officials — across Pune, Mumbai and Thane. [underlineimg] 79 cases booked under unlawful conversion law in U.P Of the [79 cases registered against unlawful conversion under the 2020 law in Uttar Pradesh]( till July this year, chargesheets have been filed in 50 cases, while final report was filed in seven cases, according to a document submitted by the State government in the Allahabad High Court. Of the 79 FIRs, investigation was pending in 22 cases, the State government said in a counter affidavit in response to a bunch of PILs challenging the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act 2021 (earlier ordinance 2020). Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel promulgated the ordinance on unlawful conversion days after it was passed by the Yogi Adityanath-led State cabinet last November. Out of the 79 FIRs lodged till July 7, most were registered in Bareilly zone 21, followed by Meerut Zone 15, Gorakhpur 12, Agra seven and Prayagraj five. The cases in which final report was submitted include the Moradabad case last December when the husband of a Hindu woman Pinki who was pregnant was arrested under the law. The woman, who was temporarily kept in a government shelter, had reportedly suffered a miscarriage leading to outrage over the case. Her husband Rashid and his brother were arrested when they had reached the marriage registration office in Kanth on the complaint of Pinki’s mother, who alleged Rashid had induced her into marriage and converted her under the garb of providing her a job. Later, in her statement before a magistrate, Pinki had said they married through consent as both were adults. The final report was also placed in the Shahjahanpur case where five persons, including two Christians originally from Tamil Nadu and two Dalits, were booked under the ordinance on the complaint of Ram Lakhan Verma, a city convenor of the Bajrang Dal. Verma had alleged that they were trying to lure him and others into converting into Christianity with the promise of jobs and free education for children. The accused were also thrashed by members of the right-wing outfit. However, the accused denied the charges and said they were only participating in a musical prayer service in a marriage lawn on January 3, 2021 to mark the first Sunday of the New Year. While providing data under the new law, the State government’s affidavit said the “the assertion that no official data is available to substantiate the claim that the social fabric is threatened by [forcible conversions] is fallacious, misconceived, not admitted and is denied”. The new law makes religious conversion a cognisable and non-bailable offence, inviting penalties of up to 10 years in prison if found to be effected for marriage or through misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or other allegedly fraudulent means. [underlineimg] One dead in south Mumbai tower blaze [One person died after falling from the 19th floor]( and 16 others were rescued after a fire broke out in the 60-storey Avighna Park in south Mumbai’s Curry Road area around midday on Friday. The fire was doused by evening and Municipal Commissioner of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has ordered an inquiry based on the complaints filed by other residents of the high rise. Arun Tiwari, 30, was working as a security guard in the building and was present at the 19th floor when furniture work was going on in one of the flats. “He panicked and ran to the window from where he was trying to come out by hanging outside. But he fell. He was rushed to the KEM hospital but he was declared dead on arrival,” said a fire brigade official. Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar said the staff of the tower should have rushed to evacuate and help immediately after the fire broke out while fire brigade was on its way. [Massive fire broke out at One Avighna Park a multi-storey residential building near the Lalbaug area in Mumbai on October 22, 2021.]  “Had they acted, the man could have been saved,” she said. Pednekar added that residents have complained against the developer of Avighna Park for non-cooperation in land conveyance and other matters. “It has resulted in delay in several safety-related matters in the tower and today’s incident is a result of that,” she said. Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal said the civic officials have taken a note of complaints of residents. “An administrative probe will be conducted and action will be taken based on that,” he said. The fire broke out at around 11.45 a.m. A total of 40 vehicles, including 14 fire engines, nine jumbo tankers, one control room vehicle, and skylift were on the spot. The fire was controlled by around 3.30 p.m. and it was completely doused by around 4.58 p.m. [underlineimg] Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 3,41,47,740 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 4,53,160.  [underlineimg] In Brief The month-long [winter session of Parliament is likely to commence from the fourth week of November]( following all COVID-19 protocols, Parliamentary sources said on Friday. The session, which is likely to have around 20 sittings, would conclude ahead of Christmas, they said. In the wake of the pandemic, the Winter session of Parliament was not held last year and all the subsequent sessions — Budget and Monsoon — were curtailed due to Covid. Though an official decision has not been taken yet, the sources said the session could commence from November 29 and would end around December 23. 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