Rath Yatra: Calcutta High Court divisional bench to hear BJP plea today

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday filed an appeal before a division bench of the Calcutta High Court against refusal of permission for its Rath Yatra. Justices B Somadder and A Mukherjee of the division bench said that it will hear the matter at 12.30 pm today. Before the matter is taken up for hearing, the bench has directed the lawyers to serve a copy of the appeal to the West Bengal government and other respondents. 

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On Thursday, the Calcutta High Court denied permission to BJP president Amit Shah for 'rath yatra' from West Bengal's Cooch Behar anticipating "communal tension" across the state.

"The court felt that the BJP moved the court pretty late on December 3 and in the current short notice it will be difficult for the state government to take adequate law and order measures. It is a big rally which will be held across the state. Therefore, it has advised all district BJP presidents to sit with respective SPs to chalk out detailed plans. The court also took note of the police and IB reports submitted before the order was passed,” said advocate Arka Kumar Nag, who appeared for the state government.

The BJP was scheduled to take out three rallies in West Bengal - one from Cooch Behar in the north, another from Kakdwip in the South 24 Parganas district on December 9 and the last one from the Tarapith temple in Birbhum district on December 14.

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The 'rath yatra' was a part of the BJP's election campaign in 42 Lok Sabha constituencies across West Bengal, where the party aims to bag over 22 seats in the general elections next year. The BJP currently has two Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal - Asansol and Darjeeling.