West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday pledged to protect the rights of 'eligible candidates' who lost their jobs after a recent Supreme Court verdict, evoking mixed responses from the affected teachers, thousands of whom turned up to hear the leader speak but remained dangling between hope and despair after she finished.
The comments triggered a spate of condemnation from TMC leaders who demanded that the Election Commission should take note of it.
'The chief minister believes the poorest of the poor have the first right on government resources.'
The TMC leader's assertion comes immediately after the Calcutta high court clarified that there is no stay on the arrest of Shajahan.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) hand-delivered a summons to Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee for questioning in connection with the teachers' recruitment scam case on Monday, allegedly over two hours after the Supreme Court had stayed a high court order for his interrogation.
The decision followed a petition by former deputy superintendent of the medical establishment, Akhtar Ali, who sought an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into alleged financial misconduct during the tenure of the college's former principal, Sandip Ghosh.
Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers on Friday conducted simultaneous search operations at the residences of Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, and three of his associates in connection with alleged financial irregularities at the institute, an officer said.
The agency also arrested Abhijit Mondal, the officer in charge of Tala police station, for his alleged involvement in the rape and murder of an on-duty woman medic in the RG Kar Hospital, he said.
Anuradha Saha had died in 1998 allegedly due to negligence by doctors attending on her.
A policeman was also arrested in the rape and murder case, the official said.
The parents of the victim doctor in the RG Kar hospital rape-murder case have alleged that the investigation is incomplete and several others involved in the crime are still at large. The court is set to deliver its verdict on Saturday, with Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police, facing charges of committing the crime. The victim's parents expressed concerns about the presence of other individuals at the crime scene who remain unidentified. The CBI, which is investigating the case, has sought capital punishment for Roy, claiming he was the sole perpetrator.
She alleges that Shami demanded dowry and was involved in extra-marital affairs during BCCI tours.
Advocate Sridhar Bagari sought an interim order restraining the state from carrying out the death penalty against anybody, including Dhananjoy Chatterjee, till his petition was disposed off.
The Supreme Court said on Friday it will hear on May 2 the matter involving a Calcutta high court verdict wherein the judges had advised adolescent girls 'to control sexual urges'.
Allowing the Centre's review of the August 23, 2022 verdict, a bench Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices PS Narasimha and Manoj Misra recalled the judgement delivered by a three-judge bench headed by former CJI NV Ramana.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Friday submitted a report on its investigation into the March 14 police firing in Nandigram to the Calcutta High court.
The West Bengal government has assured the Calcutta High Court that the law and order situation in violence-hit Murshidabad district is under control. The court was hearing a petition by the Leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, who alleged bomb blasts during communal riots and sought an NIA investigation. The state government claims adequate steps have been taken to quell the violence, while the Centre has requested an extension of CAPF deployment in the district. The violence erupted during protests against the Waqf (Amendment) Act in Murshidabad, displacing several families. The state government has reported that some families have returned to their homes.
India will travel to the city of Biel for the World Group I first-round tie, which will be played on indoor courts from September 12.
The political heat in West Bengal has been giving the rising mercury levels serious competition since the high court order.
The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to transfer the rape and murder trial pertaining to a doctor in Kolkata outside West Bengal.
'They wanted the city to be a great business hub. They didn't like the fact that taxes collected in Bombay would go outside the city.'
The Sealdah court on Friday granted bail to former officer-in-charge of Tala police station Abhijit Mondal and R G Kar Medical College and Hospital ex-principal Sandip Ghosh in the rape and murder case of an on-duty doctor.
The Election Commission on Tuesday censured former Calcutta high court judge and Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Abhijit Gangopadhyay for his comment against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and debarred him from campaigning for 24 hours.
As the outpatient departments (OPDs) at government hospitals are closed on Sundays, the rush was less even as senior doctors were attending the emergency department to provide treatment to the visiting patients.
The Calcutta high court on Tuesday directed that a resolution by the special college council members of R G Kar Medical College and Hospital to suspend 57 medics/students will not be effected, until and unless a decision is arrived at by the West Bengal government in this regard.
Instead of using her power to act against the culprits, the chief minister is trying to divert people's attention by holding protests, Asha Devi told PTI.
According to TMC officials, the party's national general secretary has decided Friday to return to the city, temporarily suspending his ongoing mass outreach campaign for a day or two.
Families in West Bengal allege that Delhi Police illegally detained and deported their relatives, living and working in Delhi, to Bangladesh. They claim the deportations were based on the fact that they spoke Bengali.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Friday filed cases in connection with the killing of eight people in West Bengal's Birbhum district, shortly after the Calcutta high court directed the central probe agency to take over investigation into the case, a senior official said.
Calcutta High Court ordered setting up of a committee which may recommend to the state a ban on entry to Sagar Island if there is any violation of health safety norms.
Mishra vanished from police radar at that time before resurfacing in 2017 when he took readmission to the college from where he passed out in 2022.
The investigating officers wondered why nobody could hear any sound from inside the seminar hall when the victim was being tortured.
Family members of a doctor, who was allegedly raped and murdered in Kolkata last month, joined the protesting medics at RG Kar hospital on Wednesday and accused the Kolkata Police of attempting to suppress the case by hurriedly cremating the body of the doctor.
West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday accused the police of keeping the parents of the doctor who was allegedly raped and murdered under 'house arrest'.
The Calcutta high court has ordered breaking of locks of some hostel rooms of Visva Bharati University to facilitate students whose semester examinations are scheduled to commence from March 11.
The top court said it had already passed an order on this issue and it was for the law enforcement agencies to implement the order.
The Calcutta high court on Wednesday directed that Trinamool Congress leader Shajahan Sheikh, the main accused in alleged sexual atrocities on women and land grabbing at Sandeshkhali, can be arrested by the CBI, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) or the West Bengal police.
His threat was heard in a video clip that has gone viral. However, the authenticity of the video could not independently verify.
The MHA said that the law and order situation of all states should be monitored in view of the protests.
Refusing to stop streaming live proceedings in the suo motu case related to the incident, the apex court said it was a matter of public interest and the public must know what is transpiring in the courtroom.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances