New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday allowed the Mamata Banerji-led West Bengal government to withdraw the petition filed by the previous Left Front government on the issue of Nandigram police firing in which 14 persons were killed during anti-land acquisition protest in March, 2007.
The CPI-M-led government had challenged the Calcutta High Court order indicting it for the "unjustified" firing on innocent people in Nandigram and directing it to pay a uniform compensation of Rs 5 lakh to families of each of the 14 persons killed and Rs 2 lakh and Rs 1 lakh to those raped and
injured.
However, on coming to power, the Trinamool Congress-led government had filed an application in the apex court for withdrawal of the appeal stating that it was ready to award the compensation according to the direction of the High Court.
West Bengal government`s standing counsel Abhijit Sengupta said Justice C K Prasad, who heard the application in his chamber, allowed the state government`s plea to withdraw the appeal filed against the High Court`s order.
He said in the application that the state government has accepted the findings of the High Court which also included prosecution of the erring police officials.
The counsel said the state government told the apex court that it did not want to proceed with the appeal pending before it.
During the pendency of the matter before the apex court, CBI had submitted its report on the investigation into the case.
The Bench had on December 13, 2007, restrained CBI from initiating further proceedings in the case on the ground that a Constitution Bench was examining whether the apex court and High Courts have the jurisdiction to order CBI probe or not.
But it had later agreed to hear the plea of CBI for vacation of stay after the Constitution bench held that the court can direct a CBI probe in a case.
Following the firing on March 14, 2007, the Calcutta High Court had asked CBI to inquire as to what had prompted the police to open fire when thousands of villagers had gathered to protest attempts by the police to enter Nandigram.
The report was filed by the agency before the High Court on February 15, 2008.
While staying the High Court order, the apex court had also issued notices to rights group Association for Protection for Democratic Rights and other parties on whose plea it had passed the order.
The erstwhile Left Front government had submitted the High Court had taken an erroneous decision by allowing the proceedings against the cops.
PTI
