Bengal govt tells HC it needs additional CAPF

The court also directed additional solicitor general, representing the Union Government, to tak instructions from the Centre on its position over deployment of more CAPF in Darjeeling, which has been witnessing large-scale violence since June eight over d

The West Bengal government on Friday told the Calcutta High Court that it urgently needed additional Central Armed Police Force to tackle disturbances in Darjeeling.

“We had made a requisition for 30 companies of CAPF, but have got only 11 companies from the Centre,” state Advocate General Kishore Dutta told a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Nishita Mhatre and Justice T Chakraborty.

“We urgently need at least 15 to 20 companies (an addition of four to nine companies to the present deployment) in Darjeeling and Kalimpong,” Dutta told the bench which is hearing petitions seeking restoration of normalcy in the Darjeeling hills.

Observing that the issue has to be resolved, the bench directed the state government to make a fresh requisition to the Centre seeking additional forces.

The court also directed additional solicitor general, representing the Union Government, to take instructions from the Centre on its position over deployment of more CAPF in Darjeeling, which has been witnessing large-scale violence since June eight over demands for a separate state, named ‘Gorkhaland.’

The ASG was asked to apprise the court of the Centre’s stand on July four, when the matter would be taken up for hearing again.

The advocate general informed the court that at present there were 3,506 state police personnel deployed in the hills, while the CAPF deployment was of 704 personnel.

The state’s top law officer also submitted that on the court’s direction, a copy of the petition and notice had been served on Gurung’s office and pasted on its walls.No lawyer, however, represented Gurung or his party Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. –PTI