The Sunday Indian;
February 26, 2012
Sainbari Massacre: Judicial Commission begins
hearing
C S BHATTACHARJEE |
Kolkata, February 13, 2012 15:15
The
Justice Arunava Basu Commission, set up in July 2011 to inquire into the
Sainbari Massacre case, began hearing at Sain Bari in Burdwan on Monday.
The commission will collate evidences from the complainant Dilip Bhattacharya
and members of the Sain family during the next three days.
The gruesome incident occurred on March 17, 1970, when a large group of CPI-M
activists allegedly looted, attacked Sain family killing three people,
including a tutor named Jiten Roy. Sain family was allegedly punished for
supporting Congress.
Around 83 CPI-M cadres and leaders, including Binoy Konar, now Central
Committee member, and Nirupan Sen, a Polit Buro member were named in the FIR. Konar and Sen figure at
no 11 and 63 respectively in the FIR.
Earlier, the Left Front (LF) government had reportedly withdrawn the case
against the accused thereby letting them free.
Some of the accused later acquired high posts like Registrar of University or
important ministries of the state government.
It was also alleged that police, under the instructions from LF government, had
burnt the records relating to the massacre. Also the then Left Front
government, on the basis of absence of records, told the Supreme Court last
year that the case records are missing from Kolkata High Court.
Advocate Joydeep Mukherjee, who had filed a petition in the Supreme Court, finally
succeeded in extracting the duplicate case file from Writers’ Buildings.
He later placed the file before Justice S H Kapadia’s bench in the apex court.
Mukherjee will be presented at the hearings as a petitioner in the case.
Amrit, son of Swarnalata Jash, the elder sister of Malay and Pranab, is likely
to dispose before Justice Arunava Basu.
The Commission may also probe into the alleged murder of NSUI leader Gunamoni
Roy. Gunamoni was killed after he came out disposing at Tarapada Roy
Commission, set up to probe the case by the then Chief Minister S S Roy, on May
26, 1971.
Nabakumar Sain, the eldest son of the family, was killed a year later of the
massacre.
The Statesman, Calcutta
Because we are different.
Walkout over Sain Bari
17
March 2010
Statesman News Service
KOLKATA/BURDWAN, 17 MARCH: The Trinamul Congress and the Congress today staged
a walkout in the state Assembly after the Speaker, Mr HA Halim, turned down
their demand for an adjournment motion on the Sain Bari murder case in Burdwan
in 1970.
The Speaker later said an adjournment motion was allowed only on recent issues
and not on an incident like the Sain Bari killings that had occurred 40 years
ago.
Several Opposition members rushed to the well of the House shouting slogans and
demanding the resignation of the industry minister, Mr Nirupam Sen, an accused
in the case.
They also demanded the arrest of Mr Sen along with former CPI-M MP Mr Anil Basu
and party central committee member Mr Benoy Konar who had also been named
accused.
Mr Sen was in the House when the ruckus went on. The government chief whip and
two other CPI-M MLAs sat beside him when some Opposition members moved towards
the minister's seat shouting slogans.
Later, Leader of the Opposition, Mr Partha Chatterjee said: “Today is a black
day in democracy. We had the requisite number, yet the Speaker didn't allow us
to move the motion.” He said on 19 March both the Congress and the Trinamul
Congress will together move an adjournment motion on seizure of illegal
firearms in the state.
Dr Manash Bhuinya, CLP leader, alleged that the Speaker had rejected the motion
to shield the industry minister. He demanded that the state government suo-motu
reopen the case. Mrs Sonali Guha (Trinamul) refused to get answers to her
questions on solar power from Mr Sen and said,"I don't want any answer
from one of the accused in the Sain Bari murder case.''
The Trinamul and the Congress would move the High Court for reopening the case.
The Trinamul took out a procession (see photo) in the city to protest against
the Sain Bari murders and killings in Nanoor, Suchpur, Nandigram and Singur.
On the other hand, Congress supporters and members of the Legal Aid Forum took
out processions across Burdwan district in the afternoon demanding reopening of
the Sain Bari murder case.
Two Sain brothers and a tutor were murdered allegedly by CPI-M cadres four
decades ago. Alleging that the Left Front government had destroyed the files
and documents of the incident, the protesters said they would move the Supreme
Court for reconstructing documents relating to the killings, Mr Joydip
Mukherjee, general secretary, All India Legal Aid Forum said. The three CPI-M
leaders were accused of conspiring, organising and committing the carnage under
sections – 148, 149, 307, 302, 438, 300 IPC. Two brothers Pranab Sain and Moloy
Sain of Sain Bari located in Radhanagar locality in ward 20 of Burdwan town
were killed on 17 March, 1970. A private tutor, Jiten Roy who had come to the
house of the Sains, to teach his pupils was also hacked to death.
Mrs Swarnalata Josh, sister of the deceased, who had come to her parents’
house, survived the attack. She wants the case reopened.
The
Statesman, Calcutta 2011
Committee to probe Saibari killing
KOLKATA,
14 JUNE: The chief minister, Miss Mamata Banerjee, announced formation of two
separate committees ~ to conduct a judicial probe into the Saibari killing and
unnatural death of Daspur's BDO Kallol Sur in Ghatal, West Midnapore this
evening at Writers’ Buildings. The BDO was found dead at his official residence
in April, 2010. Kallol's father Mr Dilip Sur had said his son had been murdered
though there was an attempt to portray it as suicide. Sometime before his
death, Kallol had told his father about his knowledge of corruption in the
block. When Miss Banerjee was asked about the possibility of any such probe
into the Baranagar-Cossipore mass killings, she said that the government is
studying the documents. Sns
Times
of India
CPM's violent past rears its ugly
head again
Saugata Roy
& Ananthakrishnan G, TNN Nov 15, 2007, 02.56am IST
KOLKATA/THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
In the Left bastions of West Bengal and Kerala, power often flows from the
barrels of CPM guns.
With blood on
their hands, as the CPM cadre celebrates the "sunrise in Nandigram,"
the turf-war in West Bengal has reignited the hidden memories of the infamous
Sainbari incident in 1969, when a young man was hacked to death and his blood
smeared on the face of his old mother. The man who led the Sainbari death squad
is now a member of the CPM's central committee.
Outlook, India
Surviving kin of the
victims of the barbaric Saibari killings of 1970 here today welcomed the
judicial commission announced by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to
go into the carnage while the CPM called it an act of political vendetta.
Senior CPI(M) leader Nirupam Sen, who was industry minister in the former Left
Front regime and is one of the 83 accused in the case, on the other hand,
termed the present government's move as 'political revenge'.
"The Congress was in power in the state between 1972 and 1977. The
Siddharta Sankar Roy government set up the Mukherjee Commission and its report
was submitted to the government. The report still exists. The issue being raked
after 40 years smacks of political revenge," Sen told PTI.
Swarnalata Josh, the daughter-in-law of Mriganayana Devi, whose two sons and
their private tutor were hacked to death in the killings, said, "Mamata's
government has announced a judicial commission. I can now hope to see the
killers punished in my lifetime."
She said that on March 17, 1970 a day after the United Front government in the
state fell, the CPI(M) had taken out a victory rally in the town.
Some members of the procession suddenly attacked the house of the Sais, who
were traditional Congress supporters, when the first rice and naming ceremony
of her son, Amrita, was taking place, Josh, said.
The family had refused to be pressurized allegedly by the CPI(M) to switch
allegiance to it, which had angered them, Josh said.
Mrigananyana's two sons Pranab and Moloi and private tutor, Jiten Rai were
hacked to death by the attackers, she said.
The attackers also smeared blood of the dead sons on Mriganayana Devi, she
alleged.
They threw Amrita into the sacred fire lit on the occasion, but he survived, she
said.
The then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had visited the family shortly
afterwards, she said.
Amrita, on his part, said that he had grown up unable to forget the trauma of
that day.
Another son of Mriganayana Devi, Bijoy Sai, however, said that security should
be provided to family members for them to depose before the judicial
commission.
He cited the killings of two witnesses, Gurumoni Roy and Nabakumar Sai earlier.
Emerging story. Watch this space for updates as more details come in
