Bengal’s ‘totalitarian regime’ didn’t want me to continue: Ganguly

Kolkata: Justice (retd) AK Ganguly on Wednesday said the situation in West Bengal was akin to that of a “totalitarian regime where no dissent is allowed”, and accused the state and central governments of “one-sided efforts” in seeking his dismissal as chief of the state human rights panel.
Two days after he quit as West Bengal Human Rights Commission chairperson – bowing to mounting pressure following allegations of sexual harassment from a law intern, the former Supreme Court judge said the Mamata Banerjee regime did not like his continuance in the post.
He also criticised the Supreme Court for dealing with him “very unfairly” in setting up a three-member probe committee.
“The West Bengal government did not like my continuance in the post. What’s going on in Bengal is virtually a totalitarian regime where no dissent is allowed,” he said.
After the intern’s allegations became public, Banerjee wrote twice to President Pranab Mukherjee for taking urgent necessary action, so as to remove Ganguly from the post.
Meanwhile, the union cabinet cleared the home ministry’s proposal for a presidential reference to the Supreme Court for a probe into the allegations.
“It’s a totally one-sided effort by both the state and central government to seek my ouster which I did not find at all encouraging. They went to the extent of sending it to the president for a reference to the Supreme Court. Already the SC has dealt with me very unfairly in the initial setting up of the probe committee,” Ganguly said.
He said he had taken up the responsibility to head the state human rights panel in April 2012, following Banerjee’s request, but he never showed any personal allegiance to her.
“Human rights are violated with the aid of the state machinery. I wanted to help people whose rights have been violated. I thought it is my duty. I wanted to take the HRC to a level where it could earn the confidence of the people,” Ganguly said. (IANS)