The Calcutta High Court heard a case involving Congress candidate Milan Pradhan ahead of the Nandigram Assembly by-election in West Bengal. The state government told the court that no action would currently be taken against Pradhan in the five old cases for which he had sought protection from arrest or police action. Justice Sougat Bhattacharya subsequently said that no separate order was required in those cases. The next hearing has been scheduled for October 12.
Milan Pradhan had approached the High Court in connection with old cases in which he apprehended arrest or police action. His lawyer, Ayan Bhattacharya, told the court that Pradhan was arrested on September 18 in an old case related to the 2007 Nandigram land acquisition protest movement and was subsequently shown as arrested in other cases as well. The defence questioned the enforcement of warrants in cases that are nearly 19 years old, immediately before the election.
Additional Advocate General Rajdeep Majumdar, appearing for the state government, told the court that a total of 11 cases had been registered against Milan Pradhan. However, of the six cases for which protection had been sought before the High Court, five had already been withdrawn during the tenure of the previous government. The state also informed the court that Pradhan was not a wanted accused in the sixth case. On this basis, the court found no need for separate intervention in the six cases.
The issue of Pradhan's participation in the election also arose during the hearing. According to available reports, Justice Sougat Bhattacharya orally told the state government's lawyer that if Milan Pradhan was granted bail, he should be allowed to properly participate in the election process. However, the court's observation does not amount to an order ending his existing judicial custody. He would have to obtain bail in the relevant cases to personally participate in election campaigning.
Milan Pradhan is currently in judicial custody in some other cases. According to reports, he was arrested on the basis of pending non-bailable warrants in old cases related to Nandigram in 2007. The Haldia subdivision court has sent him to judicial custody in some cases until the beginning of October. He is also facing judicial custody in an old Arms Act case connected with the Contai court.
The case comes as the Nandigram Assembly by-election process is under way. According to the election schedule, polling is to be held on October 6, while the last date for campaigning has been reported as October 4. Counting of votes will take place on October 9. Pradhan's judicial custody and bail status have therefore become directly linked to his ability to personally participate in election campaigning.
Pradhan's lawyer also argued before the court that action in old cases immediately before the election was affecting his electoral activities. The state government, on the other hand, said that enforcement of pending warrants had not been carried out only against Pradhan and that other people with pending warrants had also been proceeded against during the election under the responsibilities of the police and concerned authorities. The two sides therefore presented different positions on the timing of the action and the applicable legal position.
The state government also clarified that the protection sought before the High Court did not concern the five cases in which Pradhan had previously been arrested. It said that the current position against Pradhan was different in the cases for which protection had been sought before the High Court. Following the state's clarification, the court did not issue any separate protection order in those cases.
The distinction between the cases in which protection was sought before the High Court and those in which Pradhan is already in judicial custody is relevant to his current legal position. The state government has said that no action will be taken in the five cases covered by the High Court proceedings, while Pradhan remains in judicial custody in some other cases. The relief recorded by the High Court therefore does not amount to his immediate release. Decisions concerning his custody and bail will depend on orders in the relevant lower-court cases.
The Nandigram by-election is also politically significant. According to reports, the Trinamool Congress has extended support to Congress candidate Milan Pradhan. His arrest and pending warrants in old cases have since become subjects of political discussion. The legal proceedings concerning arrest and judicial custody, however, remain separate from political claims, and the judicial orders and political statements constitute distinct aspects of the matter.
Reports also state that 11 cases have been registered against Milan Pradhan in total. The state government told the High Court that he is not currently wanted in six cases: five have been withdrawn and he is not named as an accused in the sixth. In the remaining cases, he has been arrested and is in judicial custody.
Several of the old cases were registered during the 2007 Nandigram land acquisition protest movement. Recent action was taken on the basis of pending warrants connected with some of these cases. The state told the court that the warrants had remained pending for a long period and that the process of enforcing them during the election was carried out under the applicable rules. The defence questioned the timing of the action. The legal position arising from these two arguments may become clearer during further judicial proceedings.
For now, the High Court has taken on record the state government's position that no action will be taken in the five cases and has scheduled the next hearing for October 12. The Nandigram by-election is scheduled for October 6. This means that the next High Court hearing in the petition will take place after polling, while Pradhan's participation in campaigning will depend on bail and judicial orders in his other cases.
The further legal position will depend on Milan Pradhan's bail petitions and proceedings before the lower courts. In the current High Court proceedings, he has obtained protection from potential action in the five cases identified by the state government, but that position does not automatically extend to his judicial custody in other cases. The matter remains connected to both the legal proceedings involving Pradhan and the Nandigram Assembly by-election.
