A two-day special session in the state Assembly will be held from Monday to pass a “stringent” anti-rape legislation in the wake of the brutality at RG Kar hospital on August 9, which many legal experts have termed “gimmicky”.

The special session is being convened after chief minister Mamata Banerjee, while addressing a rally of the Trinamul Chhatra Parishad in Calcutta on Wednesday, vowed to pass a stern anti-rape law in the Assembly.

“There will be a two-day session starting Monday. If necessary, we will extend the session,” said Biman Banerjee, the Speaker of the state Assembly.

Sources said though the special session would start on Monday, the proposed bill would be tabled on Tuesday.

The state cabinet has already set up a committee comprising Moloy Ghatak, the law minister, Chandrima Bhattacharya, the minister of state (independent charge), finance department, the state chief secretary, the finance secretary and the law secretary.

The committee would frame the new legislation, which will focus on time-bound completion of trial, and death penalty for the culprit. The committee will also secure required approvals for tabling the bill in the House.

Sources in the state administration said the chief minister wanted to put pressure on the Centre by introducing the new legislation as her government was facing severe criticism from almost all quarters over the rape and murder of the junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9.

“Once the bill is passed in the state Assembly, it would be sent to the governor for his assent.... It is almost certain that this particular bill would be sent to Rashtrapati Bhavan for the assent of the President of India since there is central legislation on the same issue. If the President’s assent is delayed on the bill, the ruling party in Bengal could counter-attack the Centre saying Delhi was not interested in protecting women,” said a senior official.

A senior official said that some provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) allow the states to bring supplementary legislation to strengthen the newly introduced legislation.

“This is why we can introduce a new act to strengthen the anti-rape legislation,” said a senior government official.

Senior advocates in Calcutta High Court said since the matter was in the concurrent list, the proposed act should not hit the central legislation.

Gimmick, say lawyers

Many constitutional experts have called the new legislation a gimmick by Mamata. “It is a gimmick by the chief minister.... There is already a central law and there is scope for capital punishment in the existing law,” said advocate Pratik Dhar, an expert in
both criminal and constitutional laws.

Bikash Bhattacharya, a senior advocate of Calcutta High Court, also said the existing law had the provisions for death penalty.

“If the court finds there is enough proof, it can award the death penalty to a rapist in accordance with the existing law... If the chief minister thinks that police would be able to give capital punishment, she is wrong. So, the proposed bill is nothing but a political stunt,” said Bhattacharya, who is also the CPM MP in the Rajya Sabha.

Almost echoing Bhattacharya and Dhar, another senior lawyer and a constitutional law expert, Phiroze Edulji, said: “Every government has the right to seek an amendment to any central law but what she is saying is more of a gimmick.”

BJP opposes

The BJP’s state legislative party has decided to oppose the bill on the ground that the state lacks the constitutional authority to introduce it. The BJP will hold a protest rally in the Assembly on the same day, accusing the state of trying to dilute the issue after “destroying” evidence on the crime scene at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

“The state cannot introduce such a bill. This is nothing but politics and she (Mamata) is playing to the gallery to divert the attention of the people from the RG Kar case,” BJP chief spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.

Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari claimed the Speaker didn’t have the authority to convene the Assembly session. The BJP has submitted a no-confidence motion against him.

“You need permission from the governor. I am looking into the matter. We BJP legislators will march to the Assembly on that day,” Adhikari said.

Replying to Adhikari’s charge, the Speaker said: “The deputy Speaker has issued a ruling that renders the no-confidence motion against me null and void.”