The Trinamul’s Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray on Monday moved Calcutta high court against the summons issued by the Calcutta police to him over social media posts on the RG Kar rape and murder case.
Ray has filed his appeal before the high court to quash the summons and sought a directive to restrain the police from any coercive action.
The petition was filed in the court of Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj and is likely to be heard on Tuesday.
Ray, 75, and a three-time Rajya Sabha member, in his post on his X handle had raised questions on the rape and murder of the postgraduate trainee at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which has taken the state and country by storm sparking protests from women and political parties alike, and is now being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
“CBI must act fairly. Custodial interrogation of Ex Principal and Police Commissioner is a must to know who and why floated suicide story,” Ray wrote on his handle. “Why wall of hall demolished, who patronised Roy to be so powerful, Why sniffer dog used after 3 days.100s of such questions. Make them speak,” was Ray’s demand.
The Calcutta police which was initially investigating the case and whose chief Vineet Goyal has accused the media, legacy and social, of running a “malicious campaign”, have summoned a number of people including doctors, social media influencers and even radio jockeys over alleged spreading of misinformation in the case.
On Sunday at 1 pm, Ray had received the summons via WhatsApp from the cyber cell of the Calcutta Police asking him to appear before them on the same day at 4 pm.
On Sunday, Ray had informed the cops that he had had a recent attack of bronchitis and was a patient of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asked for some days’ time to appear.
He had attached prescriptions of his treatment at New Delhi’s AIIMS but received another summon to appear by 5.30 pm at Lalbazar.
While Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has gone on the political counteroffensive blaming the BJP and the CPM for the vandalism at RG Kar during the citizens’ protest on the eve of Independence Day, the party’s general secretary and the chief minister’s nephew has been conspicuously silent. Except for one tweet asking police to ensure safety.
Ray too had voiced his support for the ongoing Reclaim the Night movement.
After the police on Sunday lathicharged and arrested supporters of both the East Bengal and Mohun Bagan clubs who had assembled at Salt Lake stadium with raised banners and slogans against the RG Kar case, Ray took to X again.
“I appeal to all football and sports lovers to protest unitedly against the arbitrary arrests of supporters of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal in a peaceful and democratic manner. Jai Mohunbagan! Jai East Bengal!,” he wrote.
