Hearing in the Supreme Court on a petition against the Governor of Bengal
The Supreme Court has issued a notice to all the parties hearing the petition of a woman employee of the West Bengal Raj Bhavan. The petition has challenged the immunity granted to the Governor under Article 361 of the Constitution citing allegations of sexual harassment leveled against West Bengal Governor CV Anand Bose.
The petition asked that the West Bengal government be directed to investigate the matter through the state police and record the governor’s statement. This petition has been filed in the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Constitution. The petitioner has also demanded that guidelines be drawn up on how the Governor can exercise the exemption under Article 361.
Petitioner’s argument in court
Senior advocate Shyam Diwan, appearing for the petitioner, said that Article 361 of the Constitution cannot be an obstacle to the investigation. Diwan said that it cannot be that there is no investigation, evidence should be collected now. He demanded from the court that the inquiry against the governor cannot be postponed indefinitely.
The petitioner has argued that the Governor cannot claim this immunity for criminal acts. The petitioner has argued that this immunity requires him to wait for the Governor to step down before initiating the suit, which is unfair and a violation of his fundamental rights.
Exemption to make the Government of India a party
While hearing this, CJI DY Chandrachud, Justice JB. A bench of Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Mishra exempted the Government of India from being made a party in the case. The court has also asked the Attorney General of India to assist in this petition.
Bengal Governor Accused of Sexual Harassment
On May 2, a woman employee of West Bengal’s Raj Bhavan accused Governor CV Anand Bose of sexual harassment. The woman alleged that she went to the governor on March 24 with a request for a permanent job. Then the governor misbehaved with him. In the petition, the woman has also demanded an investigation into the matter from the Bengal Police and security for herself and her family.
What is Article 361?
Under Article 361 of the Constitution, no criminal proceedings can be initiated against the Governor during his term of office, in this Article, the President and the Governor, being the constitutional head, are given constitutional protection in civil and criminal matters. Its purpose is to enable prominent people holding constitutional positions in the state and the country to discharge their office responsibilities without any fear.
