BJP challenges Bengal speaker’s notification on central forces
Times of India | 20 June 2025
Kolkata: BJP's leader of opposition in the Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, and its chief whip, Shankar Ghosh, have challenged the notification issued by assembly speaker Biman Banerjee preventing BJP MLAs from entering assembly premises accompanied by central forces in the Calcutta HC.Appearing for the petitioners, senior counsel Jaydip Kar said there was a mismatch in the notification in the treatment of state security forces and central security forces.Kar noted that while the notification allowed state security personnel accompanying MLAs to enter the outer house of the assembly premises without arms, central forces have been asked to wait between gates 2 and 3 at the entrance.The notification was issued by the speaker's office on May 6, 2021, after some journalists complained that CAPF personnel had hit them on the assembly porch while they were interviewing Adhikari.The state, in its affidavit, said the assembly was the "exclusive domain" of the speaker and his decisions could not be called for review in a writ court because the speaker is a constitutional authority.Justice Amrita Sinha adjourned the matter until June 26.