Soni Satti
A three-judge bench headed by the Chief Justice of India will hear a petition seeking CBI investigation on the incident in Nandigram that injured West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee while she was attending a rally to file her nomination.
The petition asks for the issuing of guidelines and directions for the investigation of future related events involving the electoral machinery, to safeguard the country’s fundamental tenet of free, fair, and transparent elections.
The petition, submitted by Advocate Vivek Narayan Sharma, also requests that a provisional body be established with broad powers to investigate election violence and prosecute offenders, as well as increased punishment for poll violence.
The other three petitioners from Uttar Pradesh contended that the CBI should investigate the incident because it was an assault on a constitutional functionary and the voter’s interest would be harmed, and they would be swayed in the wrong direction.
The petition further states that Mamata Banerjee has claimed that she was intentionally manhandled by 4-5 people in front of the crowd and that it was probably a conspiracy because no police officers were present at such a large public meeting.
According to the petitioners, the situation in West Bengal has been filled with allegations and counter-accusations since the attack, with the ruling party claiming a deep-seated conspiracy against them. As a result, the current appeal’s outcome will benefit all citizens who believe that exercising their right to vote ushers in a brighter future.
