The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday sought West Bengal government's views on Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Tapas Pal's derogatory comments against women and opposition party supporters in connection with a petition seeking action against him.
Justice Dipankar Dutta directed government pleader Ashok Banerjee to clarify the West Bengal government's stand and take its instructions on it while adjourning the matter till July 17. Banerjee submitted that the petition was a PIL and as such should be heard by a division bench.
The court said that the question of admissibility and whether the petition was only a writ petition or a PIL would be decided after the state came up with its position.
A PIL was filed before the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday seeking suo motu registration of FIR by the West Bengal Police and penal action against TMC MP Tapas Pal who is in the eye of a storm over his derogatory comments against women.
Samit Sanyal, a lawyer, filed the petition before the high court last week, praying that the state police take suo motu action and register an FIR against Pal, who has tendered a written apology to his party and the media for his remarks.
He prayed that the court take cognizance of the MP's comments and direct the West Bengal government to take action against Pal, senior counsel Subrata Mukhopadhyay, who represented Sanyal in court, said.
It was also prayed before the court that as Pal has said in his letter of apology that the incident occurred during the campaign for the 2014 Lok Sabha election, the Election Commission be asked to take action against him, who was re-elected from Krishnagar seat.
"Some remarks made by me in the heat and dust of the election campaign have caused dismay and consternation. I apologise unreservedly for them," Pal said in the letter.
Pal tendered the unconditional apology for his threat to kill Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI-M workers and unleash "his boys" to rape their women after he was asked by an embarrassed party leadership to do so following widespread outrage.
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