Appearing for Banerjee, Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi sought the recusal of Justice Kaushik Chanda, before whom the matter was listed.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday made an appearance in the virtual hearing of her petition challenging the election of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari from the Nandigram constituency in the 2021 assembly elections.
The judge, at the start of the hearing, referred to the request and asked: “You filed a reassignment plea before the acting Chief Justice on 16 June. Why didn’t you tell me that when I heard the case on June 18? You can’t seek administrative and legal intervention at the same time.” reported NDTV
As #MamataBanerjee seeks recusal of #Calcutta HC judge Kausik Chanda citing the judge's alleged BJP links, the first round goes to the judge.
Mamata's legal team gives up the recusal please on the administrative side before the HC chief justice.
— Utkarsh Anand (@utkarsh_aanand) June 24, 2021
Appearing for Banerjee, Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi sought the recusal of Justice Kaushik Chanda, before whom the matter was listed.
The Chief Minister wants the case to be re-assigned to a different court on grounds of a possible bias and the judge’s connection with the BJP in the past that might help the respondent, Suvendu Adhikari in this case.
Another reason that Mamata Banerjee’s letter states that because in April she had objected to Justice Chanda’s confirmation as a permanent judge at Calcutta High Court, suggesting a “reasonably apprehends likelihood of bias”
“… it will lead to a situation and perception whereby the Honourable Judge, in adjudicating the matter, may be said to be ‘judge in his own cause’,” the Chief Minister wrote in her letter.
Also Read: Who Let Their Guard Down?
Even though the Trinamool Congress (TMC) returned to power for the third consecutive term, Banerjee lost to Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Adhikari by a narrow margin of 1,956 votes. This was Banerjee’s first electoral loss in 32 years.
According to TMC leaders, Banerjee’s petition alleged that the votes were not counted properly. Adhikari, who switched to the BJP in December 2020, won the seat and went on to become the Leader of Opposition in the Bengal assembly.
In her petition, Banerjee sought that Suvendu Adhikari’s election is declared void on three grounds — commission of corrupt practices including bribery, promotion of hatred and enmity, seeking votes on the basis of religion and booth capture; there were also discrepancies in the counting procedure and discrepancies and non-compliance in Form 17C, which is the account of votes recorded and the result of counting.
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